We recently welcomed professional climber, Leo Houlding, to give a whole-School presentation about his incredible career to our boys.  

Based in the Lake District, Leo’s incredible climbing career has seen him rub shoulders with some of the greatest adventurers of all time, including American alpinist Conrad Anker when they climbed Everist together in 2007. 

Leo’s inspiring talk emphasised the importance of embracing your fears and that learning how to overcome them is what allows a person to become stronger than before.   

The talk shone a light on some of Leo’s most challenging ascents, one of which was his Antarctic expedition. The trip, which spanned 70 days, involved Leo, and two others, climbing the Spectre – a granite fang so remote, you must go via the South Pole.   

Despite noting the amazing feeling he got from being the most remote person in the world, Antarctica was the place where he felt more vulnerable and scared than at any other time in his life. 

It is this fear, however, that spurred Leo on as he used this example to convey to the boys that huge ambitions lead to huge challenges and the reward is unmeasurable. 

A captivating talk, the whole School showed immense levels of engagement and took away messages of resilience, determination and bravery.