Hampton Park speaker toast of the town

Hampton Park speaker toast of the town

5 Jun 11 @ 07:00am by Michael Randall

Hampton Park's Ryan Gomez in the Japanese jacket he wore when he was named No.2 Toastmaster in Australia.

Hampton Park's Ryan Gomez in the Japanese jacket he wore when he was named No.2 Toastmaster in Australia.

HAMPTON Park resident Ryan Gomez is the toast of the town after being named one of the country’s best public speakers.

Mr Gomez was pipped at the post at the Toastmasters District 73 International Speech Contest, in Perth, last month.

The Cranbourne Toastmasters member has had a meteoric rise, joining the group less than a year ago and winning contests at club, area, and division levels.

Mr Gomez missed out on a trip to America for the international final, but his story about a climb up Japan’s Mt Fuji inspired the judges.

“It was a personal story called Excuse me I am climbing the mountain,” Mr Gomez said.

“I met this old lady while climbing Mt Fuji, she was 89 and had done it 50-plus times.

“I asked her what her secret to success was and she looked at me and said ‘excuse me I’m climbing the mountain’.

“We wanted to get to the mountain for sunrise, but got side-tracked having food and drinks in a hut with one of the locals and actually missed it.

“If we had have been more focused, like the lady, we wouldn’t have missed it,” Mr Gomez said.

“It’s all about focus and inspiring people that whatever they focus on they can achieve. They have to say ‘excuse me I’m climbing the mountain’.”

The 35-year-old father of four runs a business and life coaching service and often addresses business and group functions.