ep 24 - Tom O’Halloran - australian olympian

On 19-20 December 2020 at Sydney Indoor Climbing Gym Villawood, the Oceania Climbing Championships were held, giving one last chance for a ticket to the Tokyo Olympic Games for one athlete per gender from the region. Tom O'Halloran qualified for the male category and talks to us about his journey.

Tom talks about his early climbing journey, (unknowingly) meeting Adam Ondra for the first time, competitions and transitioning from outdoor to indoor climbing. We also get into the decision making process to go for the Olympic spot, headspace in the lead up and during the competition. Tom went through a very dark mental headspace prior to the competition which nearly ended with him pulling out. We talk about what got him through it and how it turned around for competition day. Plus, what it will take for Australia to get onto the podium on the world stage.

Oceana MacKenzie qualified for Australia in the female category.

Tom is currently fundraising funds to help pay for the next 7 months. All donations are tax deductible https://asf.org.au/athletes/tom-ohalloran-tokyo-2021-olympics/

You can follow Tom's Olympic journey through Instagram @tom_ohalloran and YouTube.

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Photo: Nathan McNeil - Set in Stone Photography

Music: Somerville and Wilson - Red Wasps

Tom O'Halloran has now qualified to represent Australia in Sport Climbing at the Tokyo Olympics. The Oceania Climbing Championships were held at the end of 2020 giving one athlete for each gender from the region a chance to represent their country at the Olympics.