SAS Australia: Koby Abberton in constant pain after show injury

Koby Abberton claims he hasn’t been able to surf or work since filming SAS Australia, and the insurance company has stopped paying for treatment.

Bra Boy and SAS Australia star Koby Abberton claims he hasn’t been able to work or surf since tripping over a cameraman and injuring his hip and back while filming the 2021 season of Network Seven’s gruelling reality show.

While the Bali-based surf instructor said his insurance claim covered four months of medical costs of about $22,000, the support has stopped, leaving him unable to work and out of pocket by tens of thousands of dollars.

“I went on the show and I really tried to do well — I was fighting fit and really strong,” he told The Sunday Telegraph from his Bali home.

“I did have a previous back injury from five years ago but this is a new injury and it wouldn’t have happened if not for the show.

Koby Abberton says he injured himself while filming SAS Australia in 2021.

“The network has tried to help but it’s in the hands of the insurance company and it’s really hard.”

Seven and production company Shine declined to comment on the matter being assessed by the independent authority, and for privacy reasons, insurance company icare was unable to comment on Abberton’s case.

“Icare, and its claims service providers, work with injured workers and their employers to ensure that every injured worker with an accepted claim receives the right treatment and support at the right time,” a spokesman said.

“We can advise that a comprehensive process has been followed to assess the medical evidence and provide the correct level of support to Mr Abberton.”

Abberton, who was paid $100,000 to be a participant on the show which pushes contestants to their physical limits, said the hip injury has left him in constant pain.

“The day before I left the show I was coming down a hill through the jungle and we were all pulling or dragging something and had our backs turned, so I was coming down the hill backwards and the other team was behind us,” he said of the day he was injured.

“There was a video man on his hands and knees underneath me, trying to get a good angle or something, and I just cartwheeled over him, landing on my knee and my hip area and hammered myself.

“I went to the doctor and said I hurt my back, because I thought it was my back.”

Koby Abberton and Olya Nechiporenko with their son Makua in Bali. Picture: Instagram

Once back home in Bali, Abberton said he couldn’t walk after surfing.

“I was really sore but I wasn’t excruciatingly sore so I thought it was just a big trip, mentally and physically,” he said.

“When I got home I was just laying around in my bed trying to rest and doing a lot of ice baths and heat and stretching – and then I went for my first surf and I couldn’t stand up.

“After about two months I made a report and said my back’s still no good, my hip’s really bad.

“Living over here mid-pandemic I had to go to the hospital three or four times a week and paying for doctor’s fees and physio.

“The problem is I can’t surf – and surfing is really the only thing I can do.”

One of the challenges Abberton took part in on SAS Australia. Picture: Channel 7

He said an MRI revealed several “cracks and bone fractures” on his hip and lower back.

“As soon as (the insurance company) saw it was my back they said it was a past injury and that was it, they won’t acknowledge the new injury,” Abberton said.

“They said I never mentioned my hip and my response is I’m not a doctor. I can only tell you where the pain is coming from. Now I’ve had another six months of physio sessions and I’ve got no job.

“I’m not asking for a lot but I’m asking for fairness. I wasn’t injured before the show.”

Abberton said injuries were a regular hazard on a demanding and “brutal” show like SAS.

“I’ve been speaking to Seven and the production company and they’ve been amazing, a real help and trying to help but the insurance company is the one in charge,” he said.

“This has become a big thing with these rough reality shows. Like it’s cool and you treat us like a celebrity and then we’re just at home, stuck in a mess and now I can’t work for two years. We don’t make enough money to be treated like this in our own country.

“Surfing controls my mental health, the way I am around my family, it’s a big thing for me.”

It is understood Abberton can appeal icare’s findings regarding his case.

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