“Solid as a rock” performance sees Hope win bronze at national bouldering competition!

Climbing onto the podium at a national bouldering competition to receive a bronze medal is a moment Orkney’s Hope Henderson will never forget. 

The 17-year-old Kirkwall Grammar School student was surprised and delighted to be placed third within the junior female category at the Scottish Youth Bouldering Championships on 27 April at Eden Rock, Edinburgh. 

Hope gave a “solid as a rock” performance to see her join Scottish climber Hannah Kerr (gold) and Rhyna Conroy (silver) on the podium. 

Hope, who is supported by the Council,  sportscotland and Stagecoach Athlete Travel Award Scheme, said: “This is the biggest bouldering competition for youth climbers in Scotland. I’ve entered lots of competitions over the years, but I’ve never been on the podium at a national one before. 

“Hannah climbs for Great Britain and Rhyna is currently representing Ireland at international competitions. It was a bit surreal to share the podium with such strong climbers! I was in shock when the results were published but I was very pleased with myself.” 

Hope, who was being supported by her dad, Chris, at the competition, had to make it through the qualifying round with five attempts to complete eight different bouldering problems of increasing difficulty – before reaching the final round. 

“For the final, the format was a bit different. There were four bouldering problems and you had four minutes to attempt each one, with four minutes rest in between. We had eight minutes to discuss the climbs together at the beginning of the round but after that we had to go into isolation. This meant that we couldn’t watch each other climbing and we didn’t know how well each other had done.” 

Hope is hoping to climb the ladder further with her next competition the Scottish Youth Climbing Championships on 1 June in Edinburgh. 

“I began climbing at the Pickaquoy Centre about seven and a half years ago. I remember watching people climbing and I was desperate to have a go! I can’t quite believe that I have got this medal and part of that success is down to the ATAS funding as it’s allowed me to frequently travel south for trips and training – so huge thanks to sportscotland, the Council and Stagecoach for that.” 

Now in its seventh year, the scheme is a targeted partnership between sportscotland and Councils in the Highlands and Islands - Orkney Islands, Western Isles, Shetland Islands and Highland Councils – and is aimed at helping elite pathway sports people in these regions with the extra costs of accessing development opportunities – without having to relocate from their communities. 

In Orkney, ATAS is supported by financial backing from the Council, sportscotland, and Stagecoach has also invested £4.5k into this year’s scheme, helping to support even more of the county’s athletes.