IF you want some wood chopping for the fire Rob Chatley is your man, because the 30-years-old lumberjack from Clifton on Teme has come runner-up in the British championships.

Held at the CLA Game Fair at Harewood House in Yorkshire, the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS British Championships attracted 15 top axemen from across the country to compete in a variety of classes.

Mr Chatley, who comes originally, and appropriately, from the New Forest in Hampshire, is a specialist in the underhand chop, which simulates the chopping up of a felled tree, with the athlete standing on a horizontal wood block which they chop through from each side. Swinging the razor-sharp axe with maximum power takes technique, strength and nerves of steel.

Mr Chatley was born to the sport, with his father being a former national champion. The 6ft 2ins strong-man has been axe racing since the age of 15 and is an old hand at Nation's Cup events, having been in the GB Team since 2007 and competed at events across Europe.

"I moved to Worcestershire three years ago after marrying my wife Natalie," he explained, "and have been lucky to find a good sponsor in Spike Milton, who runs Teme Timber in the village."

Which is just as well, because competition racing axes, which come in a variety of grades and are usually imported from New Zealand, cost around £450 each and he has six.

The second place in the British championships was just the latest in a long line of successes for Mr Chatley. Last year he won the event for the first time and so in 2016 he will be back again trying to be top of the chops.