Rob LeBreton is an Australian climbing legend. Starting climbing in the early 1980’s Rob took to the cliffs with an open mind and buckets of psych. His first climbing experiences were in Glenbrook Gorge at the base of the Blue Mountains. He and a friend tied a rope around their waist and armed with a fistful of rudimentary gear they climbed a stack of routes that he now looks back on as some of the sketchiest climbing of his life.

His progression in climbing was steady and unstoppable. He fell in with some great climbers of the older generation and absorbed everything. Then took this knowledge and his psych to the cliffs of Australia and the world. In 1992 he became the first Australian to do the first ascent of a 31 by climbing Sexy is the Word at Nowra. One year later he one-upped himself by becoming the first Australian to first ascent a 32 with his ascent of Attack Mode. A route that still has a big aura around it as one of the hardest routes at Nowra and still a prized tick.

He also spent time as the president of Sport Climbing Australia and was instrumental in Australia’s side of climbing making it into the Olympics for Tokyo 2020. And he tells us what he thinks Australia needs to become competitive on the world stage.

Rob and his wife Carlie now spend there time with four year old son Remy at Nowra, looking to clean up the remaining routes. I reckon his best could still be to come and I’m psyched to see someone who I looked up to as a kid, still crushing and frothing on climbing.

Follow Rob on instagram @thegoldenpitch

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