Gabrielle Hillis
Gabrielle Hillis
QUICK STATS
- Birth date: February 3
- Hometown: New York, NY
- Club Team: Manhattan Makos
- College: University of Florida
- Coaches: Greg Troy, Anthony Nesty, Jeff Popell, Whitney Hite, Steve Jungbluth, Elliot Ptasnik
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
- Two-time NCAA All-American
- University of Florida Swim Team Captain
- Olympic Trials Qualifier
Gabrielle's next swim clinics
EXPERIENCE
Gabrielle Hillis is a two time NCAA All-American and University of Florida Team Captain. She was a 2020 Olympic Trials qualifier in the 50-meter freestyle. Gabby has been with Fitter & Faster since 2023.
After retiring from competition, Hillis has combined her love for swimming and passion for working with young athletes in a career as a swim coach. Gabby believes in strong communication between coaches and athletes, and shares this philosophy with clinic participants at the beginning of each session. She wants swimmers to understand the “why” for a particular stroke mechanic or element so that they can efficiently and effectively improve technique. She tells swimmers, “we should always be asking questions and doing things with intention.” She believes that no matter how good you are, no matter your level of success, there is always more you can learn about the sport and about yourself.
Hillis has been teaching children how to swim since she was 15 years old. “I have taught children ranging in ages from 6 months to 18 years old. I have taught children with disabilities, novice swimmers, and elite athletes.” Through her experience as a swim instructor and coach, she developed effective techniques to improve athletes’ abilities while having fun. She says, “Fun and water safety come first! All of my swimmers learn, grow, share, improve and enjoy what they are doing. Coaching, and teaching young athletes how to swim, makes me very happy. Any positive impact I can make towards a swimmer’s success makes it all worth it!”.
As age group coach (Florida Aquatics) and now as a college assistant at the Colorado School of Mines, Hillis stresses that mental health and mindfulness is very impactful in swimming, saying “I make it a priority to incorporate mental health lessons into swim clinics. Swimming is 80% mental. To set yourself up for success in the pool, mindfulness must be a priority!”
