As part of our 50^th Anniversary, we are celebrating the achievements of our alumni.

Why not start with four fabulous students who all came through the Hillary Outdoors Events programme. 

#1:  Jenna Hastings, 2022 World Junior Women’s downhill Mountain Biking World Champion

Jenna was in the John Paul College team at the Hillary Challenge Final last year. Now a world champion!!!

#2: Hayden Wilde, Bronze Medallist in 2020 Tokyo Olympics

“Hillary Outdoors cemented my love for racing,” Wilde says. “I hope it spurs on the participants as much as it did me.” Read more about Hayden’s Olympic achievements in Stuff NZ…

#3 and #4: Kayla Stuart and Sam Aldrich, Team-mates Get2Go and Hillary Challenge

Starting in 2009, Kayla and Sam participated in the Get2Go and then the Hillary Challenge as teammates during their secondary school years at Thames High School.  

Commencing January 2023, Kayla and Sam will once again be teammates, but this time leading the team at Hillary Outdoors Aotea.

Sam has been an instructor with Hillary Outdoors on Aotea since January 2017. This past July, Sam became the Senior Leader and Training Support on Aotea. Following her outdoor education and experience at outdoor education centres, Kayla Stuart re-joins the Hillary Outdoors family, but now on Aotea this coming January as the Operations Manager. Sam said he is excited for Kayla to join the team and that “she was always organised and the person who made sure we were always prioritising safety.”

With so many incredible alumni doing amazing mahi across Aotearoa and the world, we look forward to featuring more stories about them over the coming months.