An autobiography
Shane Gould blazed her way into sporting history, breaking eleven world swimming records and winning five Olympic medals in Munich in 1972, yet her career lasted just three years. At 13, she became a household name; at 16 she retired and almost disappeared.
From her beginnings as a swimming prodigy up to the present, 'Tumble Turns' is the moving and courageous story of Shane's attempt to forge a normal life for herself and her family, far away from the trappings and temptations of sporting superstardom. It's the story of her tumble - from her swimming triumphs and the struggles of raising her children in the Western Australian bush, to marriage breakdown and her recent return to the media spotlight.
It has taken Shane nearly 30 years to understand what her remarkable achievements have given her in personal terms, as well as the enormous cost to her and those close to her. 'Tumble Turns' tells the story of those years and how her extraordinary experiences have contributed both to her acceptance of that young swimming phenomenon called Shane Gould and of the woman she has become.