Growing up with a father who was an Australian Rugby Union Wallaby legend, Tilly Kearns was inspired from a young age to represent her country in sport. She provides an insight into her family and how they have been instrumental in instilling values to help her become the athlete she is, that is hard work and achieving quietly – hitting your goals with humility.
She grew up loving the water, was a decent swimmer and dreamt about being an Olympic butterfly swimmer. Olympian Geoff Huegill, who won two Olympic medals and six world champion titles, including 50 metres butterfly was her idol. Not knowing anything about water polo, Tilly put up her hand to help out a school team which needed an extra player. She was ‘thrown in the deep end’ and from that moment on loved water polo. She shares her love of challenges and pressure.
The countdown is on to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and the NSW Institute of Sport (NSWIS) invites you to follow the journey of Olympian Tilly Kearns.
#NSWISLightsUp Year 1 – S1 Year 2 – S1 Year 3 – S2 Year 4 – S2 Year 5 – S3 Year 6 – S3 Year 7 – S4 Year 8 – S4 Year 9 – S5 Year 10 – S5 Year 11 – S6 Year 12 – S6 TAFE Students NSWIS LIGHTS UP – TILLY KEARNS – OLYMPIAN This is Tilly Kean’s remarkable story of resilience, grit and determination, spurred on by her love of water polo.
Topics covered include:
Coming to America
The Warrior Spirit
Olympic Journey
The Wallaby Track
Head First Free NSW Institute of Sport Tilly Kearns fell in love with the sport, after being asked to fill in for the Sydney Northern Beaches Breakers at age 12. Kearns grew up watching her dad, Phil Kearns, play for the Wallabies Australian Rugby Union team, and knew that she wanted to play for the national team like him one day. Kearns’ dreams became a reality when she made her Aussie Stingers debut in 2019 at the FINA World League Finals, where she exploded onto the scene. At the age of 20, Kearns made her Olympic debut in Tokyo for the Aussie Stingers On Demand Youtube Recording Primary Secondary PDHPE Movement Skills Movement Skill and Performance PDHPE Interpersonal Skills Health, Wellbeing and Relationships PDHPE Physical Activity and Sports Studies Select Sub Strand 2024 Olympics/ Paralympics Free STEM/STEAM Wellbeing Women in STEM International Day for Digital Learning International Women’s Day World Health Day Youth Week Paris Olympic Games International Day of Friendship Paris Paralympic Games National Health and Physical Education Day National Nutrition Week Children’s Week #NSWISLightsUp