Climber Ridal retains national title on his home wall

Climbing prodigy Billy Ridal, of Selston, says calmness on his home wall was the key to success as he retained a national title in Sheffield at the weekend.
Selston climber Billy Ridal on his way to retaining his national title.Selston climber Billy Ridal on his way to retaining his national title.
Selston climber Billy Ridal on his way to retaining his national title.

The 19-year-old student won gold for the second year running at the British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) Nationals, proving why he is ranked as high as fourth in the country. And he admitted that ‘home advantage’ on the Sheffield Hallam University wall he calls his own helped him ward off the pressure of expectation.

“It soon became clear that nobody was getting very far on the wall, so I knew it was going to be difficult,” said Ridal. “But my speciality is balancing with my feet where it’s not quite as steep and it’s really technical. I was optimistic I’d have a good chance.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“This is where I train. It’s my home wall, and I know everybody here. It was cool to compete in front of them and also a bunch of my friends who came to watch.”

BUCS is the national governing body for higher education sport in the UK. More than 6,000 students descended on Sheffield for the three-day Nationals, which is the country’s largest annual multi-sport event in the country.

Ridal was also part of the Sheffield Hallam team that took silver in the climbing team event, which rewarded the coaching he had given as the university’s performance officer for the sport.