Firefighter Coulthard takes British champion title

Local firefighter Matthew Coulthard has been crowned British champion at the British Firefighter Challenge competition. In an outstanding performance he won a total of three medals: British Champion - Gold, Overall – Silver and Team Relay - Silver. The event was held at Du Montford University, Leicester, at the weekend.
Firefighter Coulthard was part of the local Firefighter Combat Challenge team which has been competing on different stages throughout the globe recently.
At the event in Leicester, Firefighters from UK and the rest of the world including Australia, Germany, USA, Austria, and France also took part. The race consisted of eight firefighter related tasks where the participants were put through their paces as they had to go up a tower via internal stairs.
Once at the top, haul a hose externally, make their way down the stairs again to the next station and move a hefty weight with a heavy hammer (Keiser force), drag a hose along a certain distance, roll the hose and carry it to a predetermined position, collect foam drums and then drag a 70kg dummy to the finish line.
The competition proved extremely tough, with firefighter Coulthard finishing first in the race, which earned him the Gold medal and the title of British Champion.
He was also invited to join a team of firefighters from Humberside, UK, for the team relay, where again his contribution to the team earned them the silver medal, narrowly missing out on becoming overall champion.
The Gibraltar Fire and Rescue Service has congratulated firefighter Matthew Coulthard for his fantastic effort and outstanding achievement at this international event.
“Matt is a true ambassador for the GFRS and has no doubt put Gibraltar on the map once again.”