Smith had shorn runs of 164, 142, 142, 141 and 142 when he set the record on July 26, 2016 at Trefranck, which he farms with wife Pippa in Cornwall, and where he watched the livestream. Heading Downunder later this month to represent England at the Golden Shears World Championships in Masterton on March 4-7, Smith said: “It was an amazing effort with the support of a very experienced team. The crew included contractor Rod Sutton, of Dannevirke-based Sutton Shearing, and who had similar drama when he broke the record with a last-seconds catch for a tally of 721 in a King Country woolshed in 2007. Alongside them were fellow multiple records-breaker Justin Bell, of Weber, and other world record breakers were present in numbers. Goss grew up near Kimbolton, in Manawatu, son of former Golden Shears Intermediate shearing champion Alan Goss and 2008 Golden Shears open woolhandling champion Ronny Goss.

Source: New Zealand Herald January 06, 2026 09:14 UTC