British 100m track star, former BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year and Commonwealth silver medallist, Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, faced his biggest ever challenge this weekend, taking on the fastest pole climber in the world in a Track vs. Tree challenge.
Harry, fresh from winning bronze at the European Championships, ran 100 metres on the track whilst pole climbing record holder Grant Gallier scaled a 25 metre pole in a stunning bid to travel faster than the star sprinter – vertically!
Both event’s fastest times come in at around 10 seconds, setting up a nail biting finish.
Thousands of spectators turned up to see the once in a lifetime race, which was held at the Husqvarna World Pole Climbing Championships, APF 2014 (Association of Professional Foresters) in Alcester, Warwickshire.
The race resulted in a tight finish with Grant the ultimate victor posting an incredible time of 9.90 seconds, compared to Harry’s equally impressive 10.15 seconds.
Harry said: “What an amazing day. When the call came through from the guys at Husqvarna, I thought I just have to do it! This is a real sport in itself. It’s so physically tiring that you just have to applaud these guys.”
Former 400m Olympic medalist, Iwan Thomas, commentated at the event for the live audience. Thomas even challenged his own vertigo, climbing the 25 metre pole in an impressive 1:32 minutes.
Iwan Thomas explained: “Pole Climbing really is an elite sport, it takes real strength and power to get up that pole, especially if you’re not a fan of heights like myself!”
Grant Gallier, 27, from Oswestry, Shropshire holds the current pole climbing record of 9.077 seconds. Grant works as a grounds keeper and has been pole climbing since 2008. He began his career as a tree surgeon before beginning pole climbing competitively.
Grant said of his win: “I was so chuffed to win and it was a great feeling to have the support of the crowd behind me.”
