(2015 ☆ ARCHIVED) Cory Hill - Australia

CORY HILL (Australia) - Nominee for the 2015 'Sportsman of the Year' award.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/cory_chill_hill, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChillCoryHill

• Born: 1989, sport(s): ocean ski, surf life Saving, Represents: Australia
• 2015: Winner Molokai Surfski World Championship and ICF Ocean Racing World Championship
• 2014: 1st in the Taplin Relay and 2nd in the Surf Ski at the Surf Life Saving World Championships

Cory Hill has had two breakthrough wins this year to cement his name amongst Ocean Paddling's best. In May he took out the coveted Molokai Surfski World Championship, a 52 kilometre gruelling test from Molokai to Oahu, and in October he won the ICF Ocean Racing World Championship in a tightly-fought battle with fellow Australian Clint Robinson.

Cory “Chill” Hill comes from a surf lifesaving background and competes for Northcliffe Surf Life Saving Club where his father, Gavin Hill, is a coach. As his nickname ‘Chill’ suggests, he has a laid back approach to training and racing which has seen him become one of the most loved faces on and off the beach. 

For many years Cory trained to be an Ironman, where he appeared in the 2009 and 2011 Kelloggs Nutrigain Ironman Series and placed 2nd in the 2010 Coolangatta Gold. In 2013 Cory turned his focus to surfski paddling, where he has been going from strength to strength.

His maiden international win was at the 2015 Molokai Surfski World Championships where he found himself in a three-way tussle with Clint Robinson and Hank McGregor. With under 10km to go Cory increased his pace, making sure he made the most of every run that came his way. He continued this momentum right to the end, winning the race just under one minute shy of the record, which is incredible given the relatively calm conditions. In its 40th year Cory became just the 12th man to win, placing his name amongst some of the sports best including Clint Robinson, Oscar Chalupsky and Dean Gardiner.

Proving his Molokai victory wasn't a once off Cory went on to take out the 2015 ICF Ocean Racing World Championships in Tahiti. With the 'who’s who' of ocean paddling lined up and some perfect downwind conditions in front of them, the stage was set for a euphoric battle. With a time of 1:58:06.04 Cory once again took line honours, 29 seconds ahead of Clint Robinson and Jasper Mocke.

His next big race will be ‘The Doctor’ in Western Australia in November. With his name already in elite company, a win at this inaugural event would see him complete the trifecta, ensuring his name is etched in surfski history. (He is currently in an unassailable lead for the World Surfski Series. When the Series concludes at the end of this year he will be the first paddler to win a Molokai, ICF World Champs and claim the World Series Championship title in the same year)

In his downtime Cory is a full time accountant and is in the process of completing his Chartered Accountancy. On top of this he has also started a new venture, Elva Oceansports, with his best mate Michael Booth who is also a surfski paddler. Oceansports have had a profound impact on both of their lives and they want to spread the love. They are embracing it as a global community and seek to celebrate the mateship, camaraderie, and enjoyment to everyone involved. They aim to provide the best products and services to the oceansports community through their online site.

Activities and achievements off water:

• Nicknames: Chill, zChill.
• Motto: “Everything works out.”
• Full-time accountant, studying to be a chartered accountant.

This is a 2015 archived nominee. Voting has closed.