4 minute read
Rotimi Odukoya
Upward momentum
Two years ago, this London computer coder tried indoor bouldering for the first time. Today, he’s leading a growing movement of Black climbers
Words TOM WARD Photography EDWARD HISCOX
Rotimi Odukoya remembers the day a tennis coach visited his primary school in Brixton Hill, south London. Encouraged by his mother’s love of the sport, the six-year-old Odukoya became hooked, and he stuck with it until finding basketball in secondary school. This was followed by a keen interest in callisthenics. In short, if there was a sport to throw himself into, Odukoya was up for it. Climbing, however, had never been on his radar. “There are many climbing facilities in London, but it’s a peripheral sport compared with tennis and football,” says Odukoya, now 27. “I don’t think I’d ever encountered someone who said, ‘I do rock climbing as a hobby.’”
Having tired of the gym, the software engineer took up a mate’s invitation to try climbing. Soon, more friends tagged along and their twice-a-month sessions at the local climbing wall evolved into a wordof-mouth movement, Clmbxr, with its own Instagram page.
“It was born from a friendship group and my friends are Black,” says Odukoya. “That doesn’t mean we only have Black people climbing, but the majority are.” This is a significant feat in a sport where, according to the most recent survey by the British Mountaineering Council, 98 per cent of participants are white.
Two years later, Clmbxr has 2,300-plus followers on Instagram and has helped more than 160 people take up climbing. “We came together as a group to climb, says Odukoya. “It’s how society works: you see people who look like you doing something and you’re drawn to it.” Clmbxr – short for ‘Climb X Rotimi’ and pronounced ‘climber’ – now works with major sports brands keen front and centre. Diversity only brings a positive impact to a sport.
Why aren’t more people of colour involved in climbing?
I can only speak for myself, but my parents didn’t have the resources to take me to extracurricular activities. To say, “Hey, I’m going to climb rocks,” is a privileged thing. My parents are Nigerian; taking your kids climbing wasn’t something they did there, so they weren’t going to do it in the UK.
Did you have a role model?
I’ve never needed a role model in climbing, but there are other people like me who’ve set up their own communities. I spoke with Charlie Dark [founder of London alternative running club Run Dem Crew]. I really appreciated having him as an elder statesman. One piece of advice he gave me was about sponsorship. He said not to sell out to one brand. “If you’ve got shorts, get them from Adidas, trainers from Puma, tops from Nike.” That was really helpful in terms of speaking to brands.
And his advice has paid off…
Yes, Adidas reached out to us when we were coming out of the second lockdown last summer. They wanted to show communities coming back together and getting ready for sport. And North Face asked us to be part of a series highlighting community sports, which is cool. There’s stuff in the future I can’t talk about yet, too.
What has climbing taught you?
The importance of community. Come to a session and you’ll realise there’s a friendship. I love that. Two of our members are getting married now, and some go climbing together on their own, which would never have been the case otherwise. It has also taught me to conquer fears. There isn’t only one way to climb, and even if you’re tired and unsure how to complete one, keep going. Sometimes in life, incremental changes can make a big difference to the result. clmbxr.co.uk
to share its message of inclusion. And unwittingly Odukoya has become a figurehead in a sport where very few others look like him. “Sometimes you just need visual representation,” he says. “My enjoyment has been contagious, but my community also climbs when I haven’t organised one. They don’t need me to be there. I didn’t wait for someone to give me permission. The opportunity came because I had the belief in myself.”
the red bulletin: You’ve created a movement through the power of self-belief. How?
rotimi odukoya: I feel that, in life, if you put yourself in certain spaces, opportunities gravitate towards you. I’ve always had that mindset. At 17, I dropped out of college because I knew that pattern of education wasn’t for me and I could figure things out on my own. I just approach something and see what happens. Even if I didn’t have friends I’d still be trying this.
What appeals most about climbing?
The visualisation aspect is super- important: planning your route and thinking, “OK, how do I debug this to ensure I get through that path?” It’s similar to my job as a software engineer where you have a problem and have to locate the issue. But in climbing you can solve problems as a community – you watch someone else do it first, or tackle it together.
Is that what you were doing with Clmbxr? Addressing a problem?
I wasn’t trying to tackle a diversity issue – I just wanted to get more people climbing. My friends saw me do it and it grew organically. It’s nice to see underrepresented people
