Over two days of intense competition, the BSKL Climbing Lions earned an amazing second place for the Overall Team category in the FOBISIA Climbing Invitational held at Camp5, 1 Utama.
Each day contained qualifying rounds of three and a half hours, with competitors aiming to complete as many of the twenty competition routes as they could before reaching the final. The resilience and ambition of BSKL's students was on full display, as they pushed themselves and one another to achieve their personal bests.
On the first day, the U15 girls competitors - Emma and Samantha, qualified 1st and 4th respectively in Bouldering, placing them in the final. Emma put in a strong performance and earned a silver medal, cheered on by the crowd of competitors. The boys were competing in Top Roping, all making a strong showing in the qualification round. For U15, Tristan made it into the final, where he narrowly missed out on a medal after a skillful completion of a challenging climb. Matthew also made it into the finals for the U17 boys, as did Rayn, who represented BSKL in the U19 boys category.
On the second day, the boys relished the opportunity to compete in Bouldering, with Jia Yang (U15 category) completing seventeen out of the twenty routes in the first 45 minutes of qualifying and going on to secure first place in qualifying. Daniel, Tristan and Shion also made it into the top ten qualifiers after a strong showing from all. Matthew just missed out on the finals for U17, with Rayn placing third in qualifying. Samantha and Emma continued to compete well in Top Roping, with Emma taking second place in qualifying.
BSKL eight competitors have made great progress over this academic year, with many of them developing their skills in the weekly Camp5 CCA. The overall team score is made up of the top five athletes’ qualification scores - with so many of BSKL's climbers doing well in these rounds, the second place for the team was well deserved. Despite climbing and bouldering honing the mental and physical strength of the individual, it was clear over the two days just how much of a team sport it is, too. The atmosphere was collegiate and competitive, with students from across the region highlighting what a great experience climbing can be - if you haven’t tried it, yet… you should.
