Charles Stewart Memorial Cup

The Chucky

Charles Stewart Memorial Cup

Saturday 12th September 2026

Fisherman’s Beach, Long Reef, NSW

DOUBLE HEADER WEEKEND

The Chucky

Saturday 12th September

Manly Wharf Bridge to Beach

Sunday 13th September

The 12–13 September 2026 weekend will see two of Sydney’s most respected ocean paddling events come together in one unforgettable back-to-back format for the first time.

Saturday the 12th September, features The Chucky at Fishermans Beach, held in memory of Charles Stewart, with both short and long course options available.

On Sunday the 13th, paddlers take on the iconic Manly Wharf Bridge to Beach, an 11km Sydney Harbour crossing that finishes at Manly Wharf and proudly supports the Fragile X Association of Australia.

Designed to attract both local and interstate competitors, this combined format delivers competitive racing, strong community connection, and a memorable weekend on the water. We look forward to seeing you there.

Proudly Sponsored by

In memory of Charles Stewart

‘The Chucky’ is named after TV Producer and good friend to Ocean Paddling, Charles Stewart.

Charles passed away in January 2016 from a heart attack after finishing an Ocean Paddling session. Charles was instrumental in bringing sports like ours to the public through TV productions via The Wide World of Sports where he worked in the early days, through to coverage of trips like Ningaloo Dreaming and Hamilton Island.

Oceanpaddler’s Dean Gardiner was very close to Charles.

“I first met Chucky in 1990. He was covering The Molokai Ski Race for Channel Nine and Wide World of Sports. Grant Kenny won it that year and I finished third and the coverage the event got was unbelievable especially when you compare it to the little coverage we get now”.

“Charles and I have been involved in many projects since which all involved Ocean Paddling, these include filming the King of the Harbour and Palm to Pines in the mid nineties, Ningaloo Dreaming, filming of the Trip of a Lifetimes I used to run and our Hamilton Island Trips.”

“He loved the sport he loved the people in it and gave the profile of the sport a huge boost through his ability to create something special out of something we do everyday and take for granted” Said Gardiner.

The event will be held from Fishermans Beach, Long Reef on Sydney’s Northern Beaches. Click on the event Information tab for further details.

The Chucky is proudly sponsored by Add-Style Home Additions. A local Northern Beaches business owned by our paddling friend Tim Hookins.

An event of the 2026 Shaw and Partners Australian Ocean Racing Series

Proudly Sponsored by