He's the mild-mannered Gold Coast accountant who undergoes a stunning transformation into one of the world's most dominant ocean paddling forces. This Saturday, Cory Hill will chase a historic seventh Doctor title, the marquee event of the Shaw and Partners WA Race Week.
From Numbers to Waves: The Accountant Turned Champion
Cory Hill's journey from crunching numbers to conquering the planet's toughest ocean races is nothing short of remarkable. The four-time world surf ski champion views the 26km race from Rottnest Island to Sorrento Beach as his ultimate grand final for the season. With one of his signature campaigns behind him, Hill is ready for the main event.
'It’s like we’ve done the pre-season and we’ve done quite well,' Hill explained. 'We’re into the finals and this is where the titles and the money can be won.'
The stakes are monumental. The festival boasts a $300,000 prize pool, the largest in global ocean-ski racing. This massive incentive has attracted over 1000 competitors, including Olympians and elite surf lifesaving athletes, to Perth for seven days of intense competition and community events.
'We’ve got quite a few races throughout the year and The Doctor seems to just get the most talent from around the world,' Hill noted, highlighting the international draw of the event with participants from America, Europe, South Africa, and across Australia.
The Quest for Speed and a Seventh Crown
Forecasts predict ideal conditions for a fast race, though Hill believes his own race record of 1 hour 33 minutes and 20 seconds, set in 2007, will likely remain safe. 'The last two years have been variable and moderate at best, whereas this year it’s looking fantastic,' he said, predicting a finishing time around one hour and forty minutes.
'It would be very hard to beat the record because the wind that day was something like 25 to 30 knots,' Hill admitted. 'But if the angle and everything’s correct, we could be right on it.'
His paddling story began as a Nipper at the Grange SLSC in South Australia. A family move to Queensland at age 15 saw his father coaching at Northcliffe, propelling Hill into the elite surf sports ranks. He qualified multiple times for the Nutri-Grain Ironman Series and clinched second in the 2010 Coolangatta Gold before fully dedicating himself to surf-ski paddling.
Now 36, the athlete known as 'Chill' is at the peak of his powers. He secured his fourth world title just last month in Durban, South Africa, and is a four-time champion of Hawaii's gruelling Molokai Challenge. He enters The Doctor as the defending champion, having won last year's event in 1:56:13 ahead of Germany’s Gordan Harbrecht and South African Hank McGregor.
Global Rivals and Friendly Rivalries
The competition on Saturday will be fierce. Hank McGregor is again among the favourites, alongside Tasmania’s Tom Norton and South Africans Uli Hart and Josh Fenn, both of whom have already notched wins during the race week.
'Realistically, it’s one of those races where if you’re on it could just be your day,' Hill said, acknowledging the unpredictable nature of ocean racing.
In the women's event, reigning Doctor champion Jemma Smith from NSW starts as a favourite against strong challengers like South Africa’s Kira Bester and New Zealand's Danielle Richards.
Reflecting on a season of highs and a narrow miss, Hill recalled his recent Molokai Challenge, where he was beaten by local Pat Dolan by a mere 35 seconds in the 52km deep water race. Dolan set a record for the fastest ever Kaiwi Channel crossing at 3 hours 9 minutes and 44 seconds – a time Hill described as 'nuts'.
'Over 52km you should be able to do some damage throughout the race and make sure of it,' Hill analysed. 'You try to break the guy next to you and if you can’t do it they try to break you. And it comes down to who negotiates the last one or two kilometres best. And this year, Pat put it all down on the line. As a fan of the sport, it was fantastic. As a competitor, it was s..t.'
He quickly bounced back, however, claiming the world title in Durban weeks later in 2 hours 5 minutes and 22 seconds, ahead of Harbrecht, reversing their result from the previous year in Portugal.
'It was my first time in South Africa and South Africa and Australia have this really good rivalry, a friendly, healthy one,' Hill said. 'I was able to win our world championships here in Perth in 2023 which was quite special and to then go over to their home town and win one in their territory, was just a bit of icing on the cake.'
Saturday's race is expected to finish around midday, crowning a new – or perhaps familiar – champion of one of ocean paddling's most prestigious events.
