Achieving quietly. I think being humble is a hugely important trait.
Named the best centre in the world at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, Matilda (Tilly) Kearns is a standout member of the Aussie Stingers, the national water polo team. Tilly made the bold decision to move to the United States in 2019 to join the University of Southern California (USC) squad, where she excelled as the top scorer last season with 64 goals.
Her journey with the Aussie Stingers began at age 16, and she made her competition debut at the FINA World League Finals a year later. Tilly was also a finalist for the prestigious Peter J.Cutino Award in both 2022 and 2023, celebrating her as one of the best players in the NCAA. Recently, she contributed to the team’s success by winning a silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Additionally, Tilly has consistently made the Academic Honor Roll at USC, highlighting her commitment to balance in life.
Beyond the pool, Tilly is passionate about promoting sports for girls and shares insights into her life as an athlete on social media where she has amassed a significant and engaged following across both her IG and Tik Tok platforms.
Tilly is available for media and PR opportunities, corporate hosting, speaking engagements, and brand partnerships.
Talking Points
Stepping Outside your Comfort Zone
How far are you willing to go to make your dreams a reality? Tilly’s lifelong dream was to go to the Tokyo Olympics as a 19 year old, but at 17 she knew that the training and environment she was in wouldn’t get her there. She decided it was time to take a chance and make the necessary changes to deliver her best. It was frightening and uncomfortable but in those choices Tilly found her feet and incredible success. Stepping Outside your Comfort Zone
Speaking to how she made the uncomfortable comfortable, Tilly grips audiences with her refreshing perspective on what happens when you allow yourself to step into a growth zone.
The Journey to the Olympics - From High School to Tokyo
For many, working out what to do after high school can take time and much soul searching, but Tilly Kearns always knew exactly what she wanted to do, it was just a matter of how she was going to make that happen. The Journey to the Olympics - From High School to Tokyo
The journey was far from easy and at every step Tilly needed to make tough decisions - taking chances, and challenging the status quo but her efforts paid off and Tilly found herself part of the team competing at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Even then though the challenges continued - having the Games postponed required true resilience and a shifting mindset and in this keynote, Tilly shares it all.
Students will be hooked by Tilly’s unconventional journey and her ability to demonstrate the importance of hard work, dedication, resilience and team work.
Lessons from a Female Athlete
Navigating the way to the top of your field is hard for any athlete, let alone female athletes. More often than not women face adversity, inequalities and have fight to breakdown stereotypes day after day. Despite being only 23 years old, Tilly Kearns is wise beyond her years, discussing the importance of balance, dealing with hard leadership, working in a team and her personal stories of adversity as one of Australia’s top female athletes.
Lessons from a Female Athlete
