Waris Mills sets new HK360 record

With a time of 10:35:58, British-South African swimmer Waris Mills has smashed the HK360 record in a 45km circumnavigation of Hong Kong Island

On 26 November 2025, Waris Mills completed the gruelling 45km HK360 circumnavigation of Hong Kong Island, shattering the course record in a time of 10 hours, 35 minutes and 58 seconds. The British-South African athlete took an astonishing 7 minutes off the previous men’s record (10:43:06, Alex Fong) and over two hours off the women’s record (12:37:43, Edie Hu), firmly establishing a new benchmark for the challenge.

The HK360 is gaining recognition as the iconic solo swim of Hong Kong, a test of endurance, strategy, and resilience often compared to the English Channel crossing or the 20 Bridges Swim Around Manhattan. Mills’s extraordinary performance marks a new chapter for the event, highlighting its appeal to world-class endurance swimmers.
With a humble goal of simply completing the longest swim of her life, the 23-year-old Mills became the ninth and youngest individual to conquer the HK360 solo.

A multi-sport prodigy

Mills is no stranger to excellence in aquatic sports. Her connection to Hong Kong runs deep – she lived here as a teenager, trained with a local squad, and won local races. A former competitive swimmer in the UK, she has since represented South Africa on the world stage in both Life Saving and Slalom Kayaking, collecting numerous national and international titles.

Swimming & Lifesaving: Competed at the British National Championships (2018), World Lifesaving Championships (2024), and is a 3x South African Lifesaving National Champion, winning the prestigious Iron Women race in 2024.

Open Water Swimming: Champion of Hong Kong’s McBean Middle Island Challenge (2018, 1st woman, 2nd overall) and multiple South African open water events.

Paddling: Hong Kong Dragon Run Surfski Champion (2024) and African Canoe Polo Gold Medalist.

Waris Mills’ HK360: in her own words

Waris, what inspired you to do this swim?

In 2024 I visited my father in Hong Kong to participate in a surfski event. While there, I joined him for a swim with the Southside swimming group in Repulse Bay. I met a number of ocean swimmers, including Brett Kruse who was training for the HK360. Talking to them got me interested. Brett, in particular, inspired me with his belief that I could do it. Early in 2025, he connected us with Shu, and we signed up!

How did you plan for the swim?

I started training in June while in South Africa, primarily in the pool. I competed in the World Slalom Canoe Championships in late September, so I did a lot of cross-training. I arrived in HK in early September and started training in the ocean. Running up to the HK360, I did three big swims to prepare:

Lamma Island Circumnavigation: 23 km, 7h16m (tough conditions)
Shek O to Repulse Bay: 15 km
Repulse Bay to Stanley x2: 20 km

I tested my nutrition strategy (Tailwind, Electrolytes, Hot tea) and did a couple of night swims. In HK, I continued with cross-training, including surfski paddling and trail running.

How did the swim go, generally?

My swim was definitely a journey. I was so nervous and didn’t know what to expect—I had never swum this far in my life! I was facing one of my biggest fears: swimming in the ocean, and now I had to do it in the dark!

I was lucky to have people at the starting pier shining lights for me, which made me feel calm. Madison, my paddler, looked like a Christmas tree on the water, and it was time to go!

The first three hours were the hardest. I was swimming through the iconic Hong Kong harbour with dazzling lights everywhere. The water was choppier than I expected, and I was getting cold. There was a lot of doubt in my mind, and I was asking for hot tea a lot! I struggled to find a rhythm with my strokes.

My mood was boosted when Gabs (Support Swimmer) joined me at the fourth hour as we were exiting the harbour.

One highlight was when the sun rose out of the water. “The Circle of Life” song was repeating in my head, and I finally didn’t feel so cold anymore. The orange sun was rising with Madison on my left and the boat with the crew on my right. I felt like they were giving me a big hug, and it was then I knew that I could do this.

Rounding Kissing Whales (Cape D’Aguilar), there were some lekker rolling waves and I felt like I was dancing with the ocean!

I started to have some discomforting pain around 25km. Passing my home training turf made me think of all the training that had built up to this swim, and all the swimming I have done in my life!

Near Aberdeen, Brett (Support Swimmer) joined me with around 8 km to go. He encouraged me to go faster, and it motivated me to try and push up the pace!

At the last feed, I told Madison I was broken. She said, “3 and a half km to go!” I kept pushing myself to swim harder, to swim faster. I was losing focus, tired and in pain, but what kept me going was when I started to shout names in my head for who I was swimming for! “Swim for Madison! Swim for my family, swim for Brett and Gabs, swim for the people on the boat…” I shouted all the people I cared about. Then I shouted to swim for myself!! This swim was about facing my fears and learning to love and really believe in myself. When I got to the finish, I didn’t know if I wanted to laugh or cry! I was so wobbly!

Did you face any unanticipated challenges?

I did not expect to be so cold at night. The hot tea helped a lot. I also couldn’t process my solid nutrition because I was so nervous and tense. I had to switch to just electrolytes and hot tea for a large part of the second half. Overall, I did not feel dehydrated or lacking energy at the end.

Anything else you’d like to share?

I really want to say a big thank you to the crew: Ross, the navigator; Ryan and Sean, the captain and crew; Sam, the observer/first aid; Gabs and Brett, my support swimmers; my father, the feeder; and Shu, the organizer who made it all possible. It truly was a dream team!