Hayley Wilson is a skateboarder and Olympian who was awarded a Scholarship within the 2020 Sport Australia Hall of Fame Scholarship and Mentoring Program, and has been paired with Kevin Sheedy AO as her Mentor.
Hayley was born in Mansfield, Victoria, in 2001 and found her passion in a variety shop. She enjoyed sports such as snowboarding, tennis and surfing from a young age, but took up skateboarding after she visited a local variety shop and her brother suggested she buy a skateboard.
After honing her craft on the variety shop board, Hayley won her first competition at age 8 and became a prominent figure in the Skate Park League Competitions throughout Australia. She also lent her voice to the committee which secured the construction of a skate park in her hometown and would later be selected Mansfield Shire Young Citizen of the Year and Mansfield Sportsperson of the Year.
Consistent practice at the local skate park paid dividends. Hayley was a multiple national champion in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019, and won a silver medal at an Olympic Games qualifying event in London in 2019, securing her spot on the team for Tokyo. That same year, she won another silver medal, this time at the X Games in China, and raised her international ranking to 6th.
Hayley now competes for the Nike SB Team and was awarded a Future Talent Scholarship with the Victorian Institute of Sport. She is the current Oceania Champion and enjoyed the rare honour of competing at an Olympic Games in sport which made its debut.
Hayley said of her awarding of the SAHOF Scholarship: “It is a huge honour to be selected as a SAHOF Scholarship Recipient and I look forward to and will be totally committed to working with my mentor, Kevin Sheedy. It is an honour to be able to work with a sporting great who has a wealth of knowledge and experience and I look forward to being a mentee working with Kevin in areas such as life balance, striving for excellence and success, and dealing with setbacks due to injury. It will truly be a once in a lifetime opportunity which I will embrace.”
Honours & Achievements
- 2016: National Champion
- 2017: Two-time National Champion
- 2018: Three-time National Champion
- 2018: Mansfield Sports Person of the Year
- 2018: Mansfield Shire Young Citizen of the Year
- 2019: X Games, China – Silver
- 2019: Olympic Qualifier, London – Silver
- 2019: Olympic Qualifier, USA – 4th
- 2019: Four-time National Champion
- 2019/2020: International Ranking – 6th
- 2020: Five-time National Champion
- 2020: National Ranking – 1st
- 2020: Oceania Champion
- 2020 (2021): Tokyo Olympic Games – Debut, Street, 16th
Mentor Kevin Sheedy spoke about being Hayley’s Mentor: “During my career I have been fortunate to gain knowledge from my mentors and believe now is the time for me to share that with Hayley, an aspiring athlete from another sport.”
Skate Australia’s President Karen Doyle spoke once Hayley’s selection was confirmed as a Scholarship Holder: “On behalf of the Board of Skate Australia, we are all thrilled that Hayley has been awarded a 2020 SAHOF Scholarship and that Kevin Sheedy will be her mentor throughout the scholarship program. Hayley is a young woman with her sights set firmly on competing for Australia at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Street Skateboarding. We are excited for what the future will bring. As an icon of Australian sport, I am sure Kevin will be able to give Hayley the benefit of his wisdom and experience in elite sport.”
