BEND, Ore. — For 17-year-old Nathaniel Perullo, every jug and every foothold on a climbing wall was one step closer to the top. Not just to the top of the wall, but also to the peak of competition.
“I’ve been trying to win this comp probably since I was eight years old. I spent years and years of training just to accomplish this one goal. It was an amazing feeling. I don’t think I’ve ever felt something like it,” Perullo said.
Last weekend, Perullo became the best in the country in his age group for bouldering.
“For lead, I made fourth in the U.S. and earned a spot on the Lead U.S. National team. For boulders, I’m national champion, and qualified for Worlds in Finland,” Perullo said.
Perullo is a student at Cascades Academy in Tumalo and has trained at Bend Endurance Academy (BEA) since 2018.
“It’s so inspirational to watch him see him from when he was small, climbing trees at two-years-old to starting to climb in a rock gym from when he was 6-7 years old, to now, as a national champion,” Perullo’s mother Nicole Perullo said.
Of course, he had help from his coaches at BEA.
“I have goosebumps talking about it. The coolest thing as coach is watching someone work so hard, be so dedicated and put so much of himself into something. And then watching that eventually pay off. That doesn’t always happen. The effort doesn’t always equate to reward,” climbing director at BEA Cate Beebe said.
The level of competition Nathaniel’s about to face brings a more literal meaning to the phrase of being up against the wall.
“The U-19 category is a very competitive category. A lot of the athletes he’ll be competing against are from other nations, who have been in World Cup Finals,” executive director at BEA Mike Rougeux said.
Perullo has already achieved goals most people could only dream of, and he’s nowhere near done yet.
“I have open nationals later this year. I’m really excited for that, and hopefully compete in some world cups this year,” Perullo said.
Perullo’s next competition may be inside of a climbing gym, but for him, it might as well be a climb to the top of the world.
The IFSC Youth World Championships in Helsinki begin July 28.
