GB CLIMBING OLYMPIC DRE AMS THOMPSON-SMITH MOLLY
You’ve probably heard of Molly – she made headlines as a very successful GB Junior Team climber and is a BMC Ambassador. In her youth, life was simply all about school and training. Now 21, Molly has gone through some highs, lows and big decisions about how to build her adult life around climbing. Alongside Shauna Coxsey and Will Bosi, the Londoner is currently a full-time athlete thanks to gaining a Sky Scholarship, and has her sights fixed on being part of climbing’s Olympic debut.
Climbing gives me confidence. There have been many times in this sport when I’ve thought something was impossible for me, and then proved myself wrong by succeeding. Before I seriously committed to climbing at 16, I played county level netball and, before that, football. I’ve always been sporty.
The feeling of satisfaction that climbing gives you is very 3D. You can climb something better by changing your mental approach to it, getting stronger (or luckier!), gaining knowledge of the moves or just trying really hard. And, when all those things come together in a perfect moment, it’s particularly amazing.
Coming from a London family, I never even knew rock climbing was a thing, so I grew up climbing inside. My parents had no experience of taking kids climbing outside and it wasn’t even something that I knew about, so I joined the local kids group and naturally fell into the competition scene.
Comps can be addictive. You put so much into them and every time they go well, you want another taste of success, and whenever they go badly you want to prove to yourself that you’re better than that. I’m still not done proving to myself that I’m better than what I’ve put out there so far!
Lead comps are the best fit for my climbing style. I love board climbing and strength-based boulders, but I don’t like
26 | CLIMB. WALK. JOIN.
the more movement and co-ordination based competition boulders, or dynos. I find that lead competitions are more consistent, and the more work I put in at home, generally the more I’m rewarded for it on the competition stage.
During comps, to stay calm, I always remind myself that they are not the be all and end all of life. My life will go on! I also make sure I have prepared as best as I can, so I have no reason to be worried or stressed. Having a good group of people around who know what stresses you out at a competition is helpful, too.
In 2017, I finished school and set off travelling, then decided it wasn’t for me because I missed comp climbing! I came back with just a month to get in enough shape to timidly dip my toe into the the big, international, Senior comp pond for the first time. That season I felt almost unstoppable with successful competition results rolling in one after the other. It was the first time I’d ever really considered myself good enough to climb professionally.
Becoming the first British woman to win a World Cup medal in lead climbing that season was the biggest achievement of my career. My third place in Kranj was even sweeter as it was a venue I’d been travelling to since my very first year on the European Youth Cup circuit. I remember sitting watching those World Cup finals as a Junior, feeling so inspired to try to get there one day. A medal was more than I’d hoped for!
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