World-class climbers hail Rockcity on 30th anniversary
SUCCESS: Climbing centre Rockcity is celebrating its 30th anniversary
By Rick Lyon, Co-Editor
Three of the best indoor climbers in the world have praised the influence of Hull’s Rockcity centre on the sport, as the business celebrates its 30th year.
Rockcity held a special version of its annual ‘Bloctoberfest’ bouldering competition to mark three decades of climbing in the city.
The two-day event attracted some of the biggest names in rock climbing, including GB athletes Hamish McArthur, Max Milne and Toby Roberts.
Bloctoberfest involved more than 200 competitors, with Hamish, Max and Toby finishing first, second and third respectively in the senior male category.
Hamish, who secured a fifth-place finish in the Paris Olympic Games, said: “It’s always such a fun event because they’re a good group of people at Rockcity. They put the effort in to do it right.
PRAISE: Max Milne in action at Rockcity’s Bloctoberfest event
“Rockcity has the best set of holds in the country, which is really important when training for big competitions. It makes a huge difference.
“It’s also great for the public because they get to come to Rockcity and climb on world-class holds.”
World Cup medallist Max said: “I loved the event. It was by fourth time competing here, and I’ve finished second every time – so I’m consistent!
“The hold selection here is the best in the country. It has the best grips, and is most comparable to the highest level you can compete at.
“It’s obviously great for the top-level athletes but it’s also good for developing the sport. Younger climbers can look at the boulders at Rockcity and take inspiration, as it gives them something to aspire to.”
SCALING THE HEIGHTS: From left, Max Milne, Hamish McArthur and Toby Roberts
Paris Olympics gold medallist Toby added: “It was a really good event, and I really enjoyed competing at Rockcity.
“There’s such a great holds selection here. The amount of holds they have that you don’t see anywhere else is insane.
“It’s really important for the sport to have incredible facilities like this. The more climbing gyms that operate at a high level like this, the better.”
Managing director Mark English founded Rockcity as only the fourth indoor climbing centre in the country at the time in 1994.
He said: “It’s been a great event, and our biggest so far.
PIONEER: Rockcity managing director Mark English
“There’s a lot of energy in the sport right now, post Olympics, and that was certainly on show here. It was a brilliant way to celebrate our 30th anniversary.
“The last 30 years have been long, difficult – and completely worth it!
“The sport continues to grow, as people recognise the physical and mental health benefits, and we’re very proud to be playing such an important part in that here in Hull.”
Rockcity’s internationally-recognised expertise in the design of challenging holds meant it was selected to provide 600 for the Olympic Games in Paris. It also provided the holds for the Olympic climbing qualifiers in Shanghai, China, and Budapest, Hungary.
Previously, it was selected to provide the holds for the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2020 – when competition climbing made its debut.
POPULAR: More than 200 people took part in Bloctobertfest 2024
Rockcity has provided holds for other major competitions in recent years too, including the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC) World Cup in Hachioji, Japan, in 2018, and the European Championships in Zacopane, Poland, the following year.
It is now planning to expand with a new 10,000 sq ft climbing hold manufacturing factory next to its centre on Hawthorn Avenue.
Rockcity currently designs all its own holds but has to outsource the manufacturing side to specialist companies across the world. The new factory will allow it to bring the whole process in-house, and create eight full-time jobs.
Mark said: “The expansion plans are a measure of our success over the last 30 years, and our ambitions for the next 30.
“It’s our responsibility now to inspire and encourage the next generation.”
Bloctoberfest was sponsored by Secur-IT, Serious Climbing, James Legal, Design Signs and So iLL.
To find out more about Rockcity, visit https://rockcity.co.uk/.