Interview: Matilda Söderlund

Do you remember your first encounter with climbing?

I remember it well…[laughs] it was at a friend’s birthday party in the local climbing gym in Stockholm, where I grew up. I was eleven, and the first time I stepped on the wall something just clicked; I really enjoyed the feeling of moving around in the vertical environment.

Even though you started climbing on plastic, you’ve excelled in outdoor sport climbing and bouldering. How did you make the transition?

Okay, so real rock climbing came much later. My first few years of climbing were almost exclusively indoors, and I began competing in the Swedish youth championships in my early teens. I was quite competitive as a child and really enjoyed the indoor competitions. I didn’t get outdoor climbing at first – it seemed scary and cold [laughs] – abs the he first couple of times I tried actual rock climbing I didn’t enjoy it that much, strangely enough. The style of the granite climbing we have in Sweden is really hard, very technical, and perhaps not the best way to introduce someone to the sport. When I graduated from high school I spent a month in sport climbing in Spain, and that was the first time I really enjoyed climbing on rock.

For a sport climber, climbing your first 8a is always a bit of a watershed moment. What do you remember of yours? 

Yes, so I was just fourteen, and went with my dad to try this 8a called I Have A Dream on one of the local crags near Stockholm. We put the draws in, then I managed to send it on my first try, which was great. Even though it’s possibly been downgraded now, the memory of climbing it has certainly stayed with me.

What’s the best thing about living in Sweden as a climber?

Well, when it comes to training and indoors climbing facilities, Stockholm is a pretty amazing city. But if you want to climb outdoors, Stockholm isn’t the best place to live. But I like having Stockholm as my base, when I come back from a trip I have my family and friends here. I’ve chosen to live in Stockholm more for personal reasons than for climbing.

In a 2020 interview with Gripped you said you really want to do something that matters and use climbing as a tool to make an impact. Can you explain this ambition a bit more?

Well, I’ve thought a lot about climbing as a profession. I studied economics and finance in Stockholm, and seriously thought about a career in finance after I graduated. I did lots of internships, but it was terrible! Probably the worst time of my life. And then I figured that I have this gift for climbing, and a passion for it, it’s something that comes very naturally to me. And I thought if I have the chance to follow my passion and what makes me happy that I should take that chance. If I’ve been given this gift for climbing, then I should do something useful with it. I feel that climbing could be my tool to affect other people in a positive way, in a way that’s bigger than just climbing.

I’d like to be able to inspire young people to live differently to the stereotypical lifestyle they’re often presented with, and to inspire women and girls in particular so that they can succeed in adventure sports, which have been traditionally a very male-dominated space.

Can an activity like climbing – or any adventure sport –  make a difference to the world?

I’d like to think so. I think climbing as an activity helps a lot of people, it’s a form of meditation in some ways. It can also help with problems in everyday life. You enter this bubble in climbing where you don’t focus on anything else, you also spend a lot of time outside and in nature, which can be hugely beneficial. Climbing has the potential to open a lot of doors. There’s a lot of stuff you learn in climbing that you can apply to other areas in life. It’s very rewarding to try something that feels almost impossible at first, then get to the point where you can actually do it. This process can happen at any level – the reward and the satisfaction can be same on a 6a as on a 9a. From a personal perspective, climbing has helped me a lot. I think it really builds your confidence and self-esteem. You have to step outside of your comfort zone, which forces you to see what you’re capable of.

You’ve got 81k Instagram followers, is maintaining your social media presence time consuming?

Not really, I post every day but only once usually, about the climbing or training I’ve been doing, so it doesn’t take up too much time. I try to promote the benefits of climbing and generally living a healthy, outdoor life. The connectivity of social media can be problem, though – it’s a double-edged sword. And there’s a big difference between the way men and women are represented through social media, too. Imagine growing up with social media though! The negative aspects for kids in particular are so obvious.

Athletic training is a major part of life for a professional sport climber in the 2020s. What does your schedule normally look like when you’re not on a trip? 

The winter of 2020-21 has been the longest consistent period of training I’ve ever done, it’s also been my most productive training cycle ever. I’ve been training six days per week, I’ve been trying to work on my power and also my endurance. I feel I’m in my best shape ever, so I’m really looking forward to putting it into action on the rock this summer.

There’s a certain culture in Scandinavian climbing of not telling others about your own achievements, which is possibly linked to the whole Jantelagen tradition in Scandinavia? Does this culture make life a professional climber difficult at times?

The culture does exist to some extent in Scandinavia. In the U.S. it’s the complete opposite, of course! It’s not that apparent in Stockholm, but in the rural areas, in the north of Sweden and Norway, it does still exist. I’ve never found it to be an issue for my own climbing life though.

What useful advice would you give to someone who’s just starting out on their journey in climbing?

I’d say the most important things are to climb as much as possible. Don’t care about grades or sending things, just try to climb as many moves and as many metres as you can. And also, even more importantly, try to have fun.

If I’ve been given this gift for climbing, then I feel I should do something useful with it. Climbing could be my tool to affect other people in a way that’s bigger than just climbing itself

Climbing is part of the Tokyo Olympics this summer, the first time climbing has been an Olympic sport. What effects and benefits do you think this is going to have on the sport as a whole?

I think more people will discover climbing through the Olympic presence. We need more diversity in climbing, so this could be a good thing. If you look at the natural ways of moving that have become mainstream sports – running or swimming for example – climbing is also a natural form of movement. Climbing has come from this kind of counter-cultural movement, where it was a niche, rule-free sport, so it will be interesting to see how it continues its transition into a more mainstream sport. Back in the day, you came into climbing through the community of climbers you knew, but now the community is so big it’s perhaps harder in a sense for some people to get into climbing, despite the fact there are more people climbing.

What plans do have for your next big international trip?

I’m planning to go back to the Frankenjura to work on a few other projects, and I also plan to work on my first multipitch project in Switzerland this summer, which I’m really excited about.

Which figure(s) from climbing history would you most like to climb with, and why?

I’d really like to climb with Lynn Hill, as she was so influential and possibly the most important female climber in history. It would also have been amazing to climb with Wolfgang Güllich, who was an incredible pioneer of sport climbing back in the 1980s and 1990s.

Sending the hardest routes and boulder problems in the world is a time-limited activity. What do you see yourself doing in 10 or 20 years time?

My vision is to master all the disciplines in climbing, and to do more adventurous stuff whilst pushing my limits. I’d also really like to develop my own business or brand in the climbing space, which would use my knowledge of finance and business and combine it with my passion for climbing. There are very few major climbing brands founded by women.

What’s the best thing about living the life of a pro climber? 

The fact that I get to do what I love for work is quite special. And having the freedom to control my own schedule is also very valuable. But most of all, climbing is a way I can explore my mental and physical limits. To be able to do this in these amazing wild places, and with some of my closest friends, is an experience that nothing else can beat.