Worthy?
So what makes the sport of climbing worthy of an Olympic seat? In their proposal, the Game’s Organising Committees said it is “the only sport where vertical ascent is not the goal,” but Chattanooga’s climbers say there’s more to it than that. We asked a handful of local climbers to weigh in on the topic.“Climbing’s like a try-hard sport. You have to have some serious finger strength and upper-body strength, core strength — you just have to be strong in pretty much your whole body. You use everything.”— Gus, 14“A lot of people that I know say that climbing isn’t like a real sport, but it’s so physically demanding. …If it’s in the Olympics, it’s a sport! It’s hard to pull yourself up that wall. People don’t realize that.”— Adeline, 15“It’s one of the most all-around active sports out there, compared to some of them that you watch that are a little outdated. I definitely think it’s relevant.”— Ben, 30“It has an equal athletic ability, and it’s equally competitive, but it’s a more friendly sport. Everybody is helping each other with beta, and in other sports, you’re just trying to win.”— Olivia, 12“All the other sports are in, and I think climbing’s the most interesting.”— Emma, 8“You gotta be born with something other people aren’t born with.”— Drew, 39
DIVIDING THE DISCIPLINES:
Though climbing has finally claimed its spot in the Olympics, many longtime patrons of the sport, like Lisa Rands, say there is still some distance to go. Olympic climbers will be judged equally on their performance in the sport’s three disciplines: lead climbing, speed climbing and bouldering, but Rands says that’s like lumping snowboarding, downhill skiing and freestyle skiing all in the same category. Like many climbers who have taken to the internet to voice their concerns, she believes the sport needs to be broken into three separate components and hopes Olympic organizers will see that in 2020. “That would be a more fair representation of how people have trained for it in the past,” she says.
Finally.
After more than five years of rapid growth nationwide, Chattanooga’s most popular adventure sport is finally getting the recognition it deserves.
On Aug. 3, the International Olympic Committee added sport climbing, along with four other sports, to the roster for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
The inclusion came as the climax of a two-year process that allowed the event’s Organising Committees to recommend new sports that would attract youth, and Chattanooga’s climbing community has already proven the sport can do just that.
Many of the city’s young climbers – like 14-year-old Sierra Saylors – are already excited about the prospect of one day competing in the world’s largest sports event.
By 2020, Sierra will be of qualifying age, and she hopes she has what it takes to snag one of the 40 coveted spots. Though she has only been climbing for a year, the young athlete, who is a member of the High Point Climbing Team, has already started training and will even begin taking Japanese classes in case she makes it to Tokyo.
“I am really hoping that I will get in,” she says. “I’m training really hard.”
Though High Point Coach Lisa Rands sees potential in many of her students, she admits it will take more than motivation to make it to the Olympics – especially in 2020. Anyone hoping to qualify will be up against some of the world’s top climbers, most of whom have been training their entire lives.
Rands says 2020 hopefuls will have to put in the same amount of time that Olympic gymnasts do, meaning they would need to train like it is a full-time job. Because 2020 climbers will also need to excel in all three climbing disciplines, it would also mean extra strength, flexibility, sprinting and jumping training.
“We’re talking big days of training,” says Rands, estimating six days of training per week. “And then they need to do their homework.”
While Rands believes some of her students have the potential to be Olympic-ready by 2024 or 2028 if they commit to a vigorous regimen, Sierra isn’t letting go of her 2020 dreams just yet.
“It’s… probably kind of corny, but I think if someone does get into the Olympics, it’ll be because they love what they do so much that they won’t stop,” Sierra says. “I mean, someone has to go,” she adds with a smile. “Why not me?”