Warwick student Joshua Bruyns speaks on his Olympic experience

Joshua Bruyns, a competitive speed climber, is one of the University of Warwick students who was selected for the 2024 Olympic Games. The Boar Sport spoke to Bruyns about his journey to, and experience in, Paris.

The discipline of speed climbing was introduced to the Olympics at the 2020 Tokyo Games and consists of a one-on-one showdown between two climbers. These competitors climb a 15 metre wall with an overhang of 5 degrees. Bruyns explained that the route is “standardised” and that, therefore, the “wall that you train on at the Warwick Sports Hub has the same route as the wall in the Olympic Games”.
At the Olympics, athletes had two qualification runs before the elimination rounds. Bruyns summarised how the sport works in one simple sentence: “It’s a very simple discipline, it’s fastest to the top”.

While Bruyns competes for South Africa, he did most of his climbing growing up in the UK. When asked how he first got involved in the sport, Bruyns mentioned how he “enjoyed climbing trees and was an adventurous child”. His first experience climbing occurred when he attended a birthday party for a friend at his local climbing centre. This birthday party “hooked” Bruyns who then took up the sport as a hobby which eventually led him to join “a youth team set up and start competing in youth national competitions”. Hearing the “roar of the crowd” when his name was announced at the Olympics was an “overwhelming but unforgettable experience” for the young climber.

Bruyns loved “being on the boat” down the River Seine during the opening ceremony and “absorbing the atmosphere”

During his time in Paris, Bruyns stayed in the Olympic Village where “you’re surrounded by so many incredible athletes”. He described the surreal moments when he met Tom Daley, Simone Biles, Akani Simbine, and saw LeBron James “from a distance”.

While they are in the Village, many athletes participate in pin trading, an activity which has trended on social media. Each Olympian is given pins from the nation that they are competing for, and these are then traded with other athletes. Bruyns found this extremely enjoyable as it provided a way for athletes to interact with each other. He ended up having traded pins with the speed climbing winner, Veddriq Leonardo, as well as young Team GB climbing gold medallist Toby Roberts.

One aspect of the Paris Olympic Village that has been criticised is the food served in the canteen, although Bruyns mentioned how he found all the options “really, really good”.

Another element of the Games which sparked controversy was the opening ceremony. Bruyns spoke on the “mixed reviews from a spectator standpoint” however, he also said that it was one of his favourite parts of the Games. Bruyns loved “being on the boat” down the River Seine and “absorbing the atmosphere”.

Now, Bruyns looks onto the next academic year at the University of Warwick whilst he continues his training and aims for the next Olympic Games, which will be held in Los Angeles in 2028

Bruyns studies Economics with Modern Foreign Languages at the University of Warwick and has found balancing his academic work alongside training “challenging” especially given that “Warwick is predominantly an academic university”.

The Warwick sports scholarship programme has helped Bruyns by providing him with funding for competitions, free access to all the facilities at the Warwick Sport and Wellness hub, and giving him access to a strength and conditioning coach.

Throughout his time at Warwick, Bruyns has been a member of the Warwick University Climbing Club (WUCC). He has previously held a position on the society’s exec as the men’s team captain. Speaking on the club, he said: “When you are climbing, you’re also spending a lot of time sat on the mats, resting, deciding what routes and boulders you want to try. So as a result of that, the society facilitates the opportunity to meet a lot of people”. He urges incoming freshers, as well as existing Warwick students, to attend taster sessions for the club and get involved. WUCC have “all the kit and gear so you can just borrow from them”.

Now, Bruyns looks onto the next academic year at the University of Warwick whilst he continues his training and aims for the next Olympic Games, which will be held in Los Angeles in 2028.