His oldest brother, Kerry, was imprisoned and killed by members of the Khmer Rouge in 1978, after straying into Cambodian waters.

[2][3] Hamill considers boxer Muhammad Ali his role model, "his skill, athleticism, courage, arrogance and self-belief all had a huge influence.

"[4] At the 1994 World Rowing Championships at Eagle Creek Park, Indianapolis, United States, Hamill won a silver medal in the lightweight men's double sculls with Mike Rodger.

[7] He is most well known for his winning of the inaugural Atlantic Rowing Race with Phil Stubbs in 1997, with a world record time of forty-one days, two hours and fifty-five minutes.

[24] He is a member of the WEL Energy Trust,[25] and is considering standing for Environment Waikato in the 2010 local body elections.

[26] While on a trip from Singapore to Bangkok,[27] Hamill's older brother, Kerry, was captured, tortured, interrogated and killed in the S-21 prison by the Khmer Rouge in 1978,[28] after being caught in a storm on his yacht, Foxy Lady,[29] and straying into Cambodian waters.

[38][39] Hamill's search for his brother's story has been made into a documentary film entitled Brother Number 1,[28] funded by NZ On Air and TV3, and the New Zealand Film Commission, directed by Annie Goldson, and produced by Hamill, Goldson and James Bellamy.