Aiming for medals - aiming for university. Max Liddell from Newcastle, that's 'Max Speed' to a lot of his mates...is on a roll. Well...roller skates to be perfectly correct.
He’s not only part of the Newcastle Junior Roller Derby club, appearing for the Tyne & Fear team (they play out of the Walker Activity Dome), he’s also a member of the Great Britain national squad and has recently returned from the Junior Roller Derby World Cup which took place in France.
Okay, results didn’t go exactly how Team GB would have wished, but it all went rather well for Max because he was given an award for sportsmanship. A skater from one of the other nations suffered an accident with one of their roller skates, so Max loaned him one of his spare sets of wheels. Good on him.
And further congratulations are in order for Max because he’s been a bag of nerves, not only because he was representing his country at Roller Derby, but because he’s been waiting for his A Level results.
And we’re delighted to report that he got exactly the results he was looking for…so…off to Newcastle University he goes to read History and Politics.
“I’ve been doing Roller Derby since I was 11 and have been used to the rough and tumble of competition, but there is nothing worse than the build-up to receiving examination results,” says Max. “So, after gaining 3 A Levels, it means I’m not only preparing for a new season of Roller Derby, I’m also getting ready to start university
.and I can’t wait for both.”
Max, is building a reputation as one of the country’s up-andcoming roller skaters. He not only went to this year’s World Championship in France, he was also named in the Team GB squad for the 2020 World Cup in Canada.
“I got into Roller Derby because my mother and sister were really interested…so we joined Junior Roller Derby. The new season has just got underway and we’re already building up to the next European Cup which will be help in Newcastle. It’s taken a while for the sport to recover following the Covid pandemic, but things are slowly getting back to normal.”
If you’re not aware of Roller Derby, it’s worth checking out some footage on social media. The players from two teams skate around an elliptical track, and the general idea is that one skater from one team has to break away from their four teammates and try to complete a full lap of the track. The only snag is that the skaters on the other team try to stop any breakaway while also trying to help one of their own teammates also complete a lap.
It’s probably one of the most chaotic sports you are ever likely to witness.
“It can pretty rough out there,” adds Max. “I’ve been lucky to have avoided any serious injuries but I always go home with plenty of cuts, bruises and burns.”
Anyway, Max has certainly got his skates on. He’s not only involved with the GB Roller Derby team, he’s also off to university to begin the next lap of his education.
Good luck Max.