Jo with the trophy |
She’s
done it again…
We’re over-the-moon to announce that our
very own Josephine Hedger is World Tree Climbing Champion 2014!
The ISA International Tree Climbing
Competition was held in Milwaukee, USA, on the 2nd and 3rd August. With 39 men
and 19 women competing, the event was truly buzzing. And of course, last year’s
winners Scott Forrest and Nicola Ward-Allen were there to defend their titles, “It's
a challenge to beat a defending Champion. When you’ve got something to protect,
your determination goes up a gear. Nicola and I are very close in terms of
points in the majority of events, which meant I had to be extremely focused
throughout,” says Jo.
All ready to go |
The comp kicked off with breakfast in the
park at 7:30, which Jo notoriously never eats! Her first event was the
Throwline, followed by the Foot Lock, Aerial Rescue (Jo’s personal favourite),
Speed Climb and Work Climb. While scores were added, Jo took part in a demo for
next year’s new Ascent event, whereby she used a Single Rope Technique.
At 6:30 sharp(ish!), each of the prelim
event winners up to 3rd place were announced. Jo and UK’S Matt Glen came 3rd in
the team event and Jo came 2nd in total prelim scores. Four males and three females
were put through to the Masters Climb the next day, Jo being one of them, of
course!
Entrees have 32 minutes to complete the
Masters Climb. True to form, Jo completed hers with 50 seconds left on the
clock. Whilst scores were counted, Jo competed in the head to head footlock
event. And yes, she won!
Scott Forrest & Josephine Hedger 2014 Champions |
Finally, the results of the competition were
announced during the ISA opening ceremony. There, Jo triumphantly claimed her
trophy, but not before tripping over her own foot on the way up. Priceless!
“Apart from tripping over at the awards
ceremony and also setting off the buzzer during the Work Climb event, this
year’s comp was a lot of fun! The party afterwards was particularly amusing –
when I start dancing, I don’t stop! I’d like to thank my sponsor DMM Wales for supporting me and
providing hardware, and Honey Bros for
supplying textile equipment. Now I have my sights set on 2015…a fourth title
wouldn’t hurt!”
Award Ceremony |