Wilkinson, a Canadian whose mother hails from Wales, set out early in the morning to climb Snowdon — or Yr Wyddfa, as it’s known in Welsh — a 3,560-foot (1,085-meter) mountain deeply personal to her and symbolic of Wales’ journey to its first major tournament.
While Wilkinson made the ascent on foot, the assembled media took the early 7 a.m. train to the summit, where she revealed the 23-player list.
“It was always going to be an uphill battle, one with little setbacks along the way,” Wilkinson said at the mountaintop news conference. “That’s what mountaineering is — stretches that are steep, some that level out. There are so many parallels.
“We’ve used this mountain as a metaphor throughout the campaign. Now, as we head toward the Euros, we’re talking about the summit — the Everest part. Something always seems impossible until it isn’t. And now, we’re there.”
Yr Wyddfa holds deep personal significance for Wilkinson. Her parents honeymooned there, she hiked it as a child, and a ceremony was held on the mountain after her father’s passing.
Among the notable inclusions in the squad is veteran midfielder Sophie Ingle. The 33-year-old, who has been sidelined since September with an anterior cruciate ligament injury, returns with 141 caps to her name. Ingle captained Wales 83 times between 2015 and 2024 before stepping down from the role.