The Australian Women’s Basketball Team (Opals) had just defeated Brazil in the semi-finals of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. They were now to play in their first Olympic Gold Medal Game. To the delight of the capacity parochial crowd Opals forward Jo Hill did a handstand and walked across the court from one sideline to the other. It was a very different moment to when Jo was representing South Australia for the first time at a National Junior Championship when she was told to “substitute” into the game and walked to the bench and asked for a “foul”. To which the bench official replied “I can give you a foul, but I think you mean a sub”.
Joanne “Jo” Hill was born in Murray Bridge, South Australia on June 19th, 1973. She started playing basketball at age sixteen for the North Adelaide Rockets. Jo recalls, “I was asked by a girl who I competed against at my school sports day whether I would like to play basketball. I had never played basketball before and thought it was just a social thing but it was for a District Club. The thing was I had no idea what an offence, rebound, defence, block-out or anything else was, as I was a netballer and ran around with my arms by my side. So I obviously played limited basketball time.”
Jo’s rough start to basketball continued. “I was training for Athletics as well and had been chosen to compete at the Pan Pacific Games in Brisbane and was so excited,” remembers Jo. “Then while playing Basketball I trod on someone’s foot and tore ligaments and chipped a bone in my ankle and was out for twelve weeks. I could not go to Brisbane! Now I absolutely hated basketball and didn’t want to play anymore. Then my basketball coach called to ask why I wasn’t at training and I burst into tears and told the coach I didn’t want to play anymore.”Fortunately her coach Lee Prettejohn convinced her to stay with basketball.
In 1989 Jo was asked to train with the Women’s National Basketball League (WNBL) team North Adelaide. She also played with the South Australian (SA) Under 18 team and won a National Title in 1990.
Jo played with North Adelaide in the WNBL in 1989, 1990 (WNBL Champions) and 1991before accepting a scholarship to the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in Canberra in 1992.
At the AIS Jo demonstrated her athleticism, tenacity and competitive spirit and under the coaching of Phil Brown and the AIS staff soon added to her substantial skill level. At the AIS she played in the WNBL and gained further valuable experience.
Jo’s international career began in 1990 when she was selected on the Australian Youth Team that toured the USA where they played twelve games. In 1991 she played with the Youth Team (Gems) in the first Olympic Youth Rally which was held in Spain.
Jo played for the Gems against the South West All Stars (USA) in 1992 and in the Oceania Youth World Championship Qualification Tournament (which they won) before touring to the William Jones Cup Tournament in Taiwan. At the end of the year Jo was a member of the Gems team that undertook a twelve match tour of Europe. In 1993 Jo played for the Gems against Japan B, against the Korea Junior Team and the Ukraine National Women’s Team, and in the Malaysian Cup.
The Women’s Youth World Cup was played in Korea in 1993 and Jo was a member of that team which won Australia’s first Gold Medal at a World or Olympic Championship. This was also her final year at the AIS.
In 1994 Jo returned to Adelaide and played with the newly formed combined Adelaide WNBL team, the Adelaide Lightning. With the Lightning Jo won WNBL titles in 1994, 1995, 1996 and1998. In all, she won five WNBL titles with Adelaide Clubs. She won the Halls Medal for South Australia’s Best and Fairest Women’s Player in 1994.
Jo was named as a WNBL All Star in the 1999/2000 season when she played for the Lightning. After stints overseas Jo returned to the WNBL and played with the Canberra Capital (2003/2004), Townsville in (2009/10) and Adelaide Lightning (2011/12).
After the World Youth Championships in 1993 Jo was chosen for her first Australian National Team (now known as the Opals) in 1994 when the team toured to China. In 1995 she played for the Opals in a series against Korea in Australia. That year she also played for the Opals in the Goldmark Cup against China and toured to Europe. She did not play for the Opals in 1996.
She was selected to play for the Opals against Japan and Russia in 1997 and played on the Opals team that won the Oceania 1998 World Championships Qualification Tournament that year. Jo played for the Opals when the team completed 1997 with tournaments in the USA and Brazil.
Jo was determined to play for the Opals at a World Championship and Olympics. She achieved the first aim when she was selected to play for the Opals at the World Championships in Germany in 1998. In the build-up to that tournament Jo and the Opals played against Brazil, in the Japan Women’s Basketball Festival, in the Grand Prix of Slovakia and in a tournament in Portugal. The Opals played extremely well in Germany and won Australia’s first ever medal at a senior Women’s World Championship when they secured the Bronze Medal.
The next major objective for Jo was to play for the Opals in the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. Late in 1998 she played for the Opals in the Maher Cup against China and in the Goldmark Cup against the USA. The next year she played in the Maher and Goldmark Cups against Cuba and Brazil respectively. Also in that year (1999) Jo played for the Opals in the US Olympic Cup and the USA Invitational.
Jo put every effort she could into remaining on the Opals roster in 2000 as the Sydney Olympics loomed. She was named as Captain of the Adelaide Lightning in the WNBL and wasnamed in the WNBL All Star Team in 2000. She played for the Opals in the Maher Cup against Russia, in the Olympic Test Event, in the Goldmark Cup against Canada and was selected to tour to France and Poland. Jo’s ambitions and dreams came to fruition as she was named to the Opals team for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.
In their lead in preparation to the Games Jo and the Opals played against New Zealand, the USA in Melbourne, and Brazil in Wollongong.
The Opals played brilliantly in the Sydney 2000 Olympic Tournament and were undefeated in the Tournament until the Final. Jo played inspirational minutes in a number of games and became a crowd favourite with her gutsy efforts, athleticism, skill work ethic which lifted her team-mates. The Opals lost the final to the powerful USA team and won the Silver Medal in what was an outstanding effort and Australia’s first ever Olympic Basketball Silver Medal.
After the Sydney 2000 Olympics, Jo decided to play professional basketball in Tarbes, France. She played at Tarbes for four years from 2000 to 2003. In her time at Tarbes the team was runners-up in the Ronchetti Cup and the French Championships. She injured a knee in 2003 and returned to Australia to play for the Canberra Capitals for the 2003/04 season and won the Players Player Award for the Capitals.
Whilst in France in 2001 Jo played for the Opals on their European tour to France and Spain and also played on the Opals team that won the Oceania 2002 World Championships Qualification Tournament which was played in New Zealand. She did not play for the Opals in 2002.
In 2003 Jo joined the Opals on their European tour to Greece, Belgium and France.
That tour concluded Jo’s career with the Opals.
Jo returned to Europe and played the 20004/05 season for Leon in Spain. The next year she played in Madrid, and then with Villagarcia, Spain from 2006 to 2008.
She was now 35 years of age and decided to return to Australia to play in the WNBL, and not retire as many would have thought. She joined the Townsville Fire for the 2009/10 WNBL season and in the 2010/11 season won the Club’s Players Player Award and the Fan’s Players Award. She was continuing what she had always done and that was to inspire her team-mates and the fans.
Jo returned to the Adelaide Lightning for the 2011/12 season and was named as Captain of the team. She had another inspirational year and continued as a team and crowd favourite.
Jo Hill continues to play inspiring basketball and defies the limits of age to be an elite player and leader. At 39 years of age she still plays the way she knows best and that is with inspiring plays that ignite her team-mates and the fans. Her athleticism remains undiminished and fans wonder how long she can continue to play at the elite level she does and in particular considering the physical and all-out-effort at which she plays.
Jo Hill has had a long and distinguished basketball career in Australia and Europe. She has won a Gold Medal at the World Youth Women’s Championships, an Olympic Silver Medal, and a World Championship Bronze Medal and numerous awards at WNBL and Club level.Jo Hill epitomises what the great game of basketball is all about.