What did you miss?
Climbing reached its mainstream media pinnacle this past week with its historic premiere Olympic inclusion. This degree of popularity and widespread appeal has been a long time coming for the sport.
From the earliest instances of global competitions such as the first international climbing competition held here in Utah at Snowbird Resort to the Hollywood films Free Solo and The Dawn Wall which propelled dirtbag climbers Alex Honnold and Tommy Caldwell to superstar status, climbing’s popularity has been on the upswing for decades.
We all know how wonderful climbing is, surely it was just a matter of time before the masses learned to love and appreciate the sport too. These days, it’s more common than not to see climbing featured in cringy advertisements for everything from betting apps and cars to insurance.
The sport’s newfound fame surely has its pros and cons, as did the event itself. Let’s look at some of the best and worst moments and elements of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Sport Climbing competition.
THE GOOD //
Speed World Record
The women’s final started out with a bang as Polish speed specialist Aleksandra Miroslaw ripped through her race against France’s Anouck Jaubert for a world record! Her time of 6.84 seconds bested Russian Iuliia Kaplina’s November 2020 record by over a tenth of a second. Congratulations Aleksandra!
Jakob’s Podium Jubilation
Silver Medal for Salt Lake’s Own Nathaniel Coleman
If you’ve spent any significant amount of time in the Utah climbing scene you are bound to know of Nathaniel Coleman. Perhaps you attended Bouldering Nationals at the Salt Palace in 2017 or 2018, when Coleman won in spectacular style both years by flashing all the finals problems in front of a loving home crowd. Or maybe you’ve seen him putting in the work during one of his many training days at The Front. He is our multi-year Deadpoint champion, and if you haven’t seen this video of him establishing the hardest boulder problem in Little Cottonwood (and one of the hardest in the world), you should probably check it and get hip.
Things were not looking great for Coleman in the qualification, but he sneaked his way into the final in the 8th and last position. Coleman’s Olympic final debut began with a neck and neck race against Mickael Mawem of France. Both climbers had one small slip, and in the end, Coleman lost by just a tenth of a second. After slipping once more and losing his second race to compatriot Colin Duffy, it was again seeming grim for his podium chances.
“Goodbye Salt Lake, I’ll see y’all on the other side of this thing! Thank you to everyone who’s shown support these last few days, I feel like I have the wind at my back
Excited and nervous, the perfect combination!”
– Nathaniel Coleman, July 21 2021
Not one to be easily defeated, Nathaniel Coleman proved his abilities in his best discipline, bouldering. Having flashed the first problem, along with several other competitors, Coleman continued to the second problem, a dynamic giddy-up double-clutch dyno into a nails hard finishing move that had bested all other athletes. With over a minute to spare, Coleman stuck the last move utilizing a flying toe-hook catch. This move secured his 1st place finish in bouldering. In the last discipline, Lead, Coleman gave it his all and put in a good fight, placing 5th and seizing his silver medal!
Congratulations Nathaniel, you earned this. <3
Idyllic Women’s Podium
Unlike the men’s unexpected results, the women’s podium was highly anticipated. Janja Garnbret, arguably the best competition climber of all time, earned her gold medal by placing first in both sport and bouldering in a show of dominance. No one can deny her excellence, hard work, and passion.
In second and third place were two of the most well-respected and beloved climbers of their generation. Miho Nonaka and Akiyo Noguchi, both Japanese, have had illustrious competition climbing careers. Nonaka, 24, had put considerable emphasis on her speed climbing since qualifying for the Olympics and even scored a medal at the Salt Lake City World Cup earlier this summer. Her well-roundedness and dedication brought her home silver, to the applause of millions of adoring fans. Akiyo Noguchi, one of climbing’s superstars for more than ten years had announced that she would be retiring after this competition. The masses were all rooting for the 32-year-old, hoping she could add one final medal to her legacy collection of nearly 70 World Cup podium finishes. The three deserving athletes shared a beautiful, emotional podium celebration together, closing out the Sport Climbing Olympics.
THE BAD //
The Scoring
If there is one complaint you have heard about Olympic climbing, it is likely the scoring system. For context, the way the competition was scored was based on multiplying the rank of the competitors’ 3 disciplines. The lowest score wins. Read this article for a thorough explanation.
This format allowed for some interesting drama, as going into the final discipline, it seemed like truly anyone could win. Drastic changes occurred as each climber attempted the lead route. For example, Adam Ondra was in a position to win it all, but when Jakob Schubert surpassed his highpoint, his position slipped from 1st to 6th. As such, it was very difficult for viewers to keep track of the leaders and follow along with the event’s results in real time.
Poor Setting on the Boulders
Routesetters are tasked with the hardest job of any competition, and the pressure to perform on the Olympic stage is sure to be immense. That being said, the bouldering final sets left something to be desired. Given only 3 problems in the final to create separation certainly complicated things, however the rounds went as follow:
Men’s:
Boulder one was a bit of a wash, with 7 of the 8 competitors sending, and many of them doing so on their first attempt. This was, for many across the world, their first look at climbing, and the slow, tenuous nature of the slab climb was not the jaw-dropping spectacle I’d anticipated. The second problem was the best of the round. It began with a coordination dyno and ended in a tricky last move that was only sent by American, Nathaniel Coleman. There was not much separation created here, aside from Coleman moving to the head of the pack. The final climb was the worst of the round and left viewers and athletes alike scratching their heads in confusion. The problem was aesthetic, I’ll give them that, but every climber flashed to the bonus hold and none could surpass it. There was no separation and sadly no tops. Frankly, it seemed impossible, and some have indicated that none of the athletes read the beta correctly.
Women’s:
The first women’s problem was an interesting slab topped only by the legend, Janja Garnbret. The second, the announcers told us was designed to be started facing backwards towards the crowd. Unfortunately, none of the women could read that sequence. It was an incredibly boring segment where most of the women battled to burl through the climb facing forwards, unsuccessfully. Fortunately for the setters, a few athletes made it through the bottom, and again, only Janja topped, skipping the last hold and dynoing straight to the finish. Similar to the men’s round, the final problem was too difficult and received no tops.
Bassa’s Injury and the Subsequent Speed Debacle
Bassa Mawem of France put up a lightning-fast time on the speed wall in qualifiers, securing first place in the discipline and a spot in the final. Unfortunately, tragedy struck just a few moves into the lead route, his bicep tendon snapped, leaving him unfit to compete in the subsequent final. The popular opinion was that the runner-up, German, Alex Megos, should take his spot in the final, but the IFSC’s rulebook could not be altered and thus, just seven men went on to compete in the next round.
This was problematic for a few reasons and greatly altered the competition’s result. First, and most evidently, Adam Ondra, the last place speed qualifier, would have a bye in the first round of bracket-style competition. Ordinarily, he would have faced Mawem and in all likelihood lost, taking the 7th or 8th spot for the discipline. Rather, Ondra advanced to the semi-final, meaning the worst he could place was 4th, giving him a tremendous advantage. In practice, this also meant that Alberto Gines Lopez, the eventual gold medal winner, would take first in speed despite being one of the slowest athletes.
By my calculations, had Bassa not been injured, he likely would have placed first, greatly impacting Lopez’s score, and making way for Nathaniel Coleman to take the gold medal.
Brooke’s Unfortunate Series of Events
Brooke Raboutou, one of American climbing’s wunderkinds, was poised to make waves at this event. Sadly, it was not in the cards for her this year. In speed, Raboutou nearly beat out the favorite Janja Garnbret. Garnbret slipped mid-route, and everything looked in Raboutou’s favor. In an amazing showing of strength and determination, Garnbret remarkably came from behind to win by an extremely small margin.
Raboutou hoped to redeem herself in bouldering, her specialty, but once again was met with disappointment. On problem one, she had surpassed all other competitors to that point and had made it to the finish hold with relative ease. As she set up to match it for a send, her foot jarringly slipped and sent her to the pads without enough time to reclimb the boulder. The second problem was similar. She bested the performance of the other athletes, only to run out of time as she neared the finish of the problem. Fortunately for her, she still was able to come away with a 2nd place finish in this discipline.
The final tragic moment came for Raboutou on the lead route. She was looking fresh and eager to perform, with a podium finish in her sights, when a devastating foot slip off a dual-textured foothold ended her climb.
While it was tough to watch Raboutou’s heartbreaking round, we are still incredibly proud of her. She is one of the most accomplished young climbers and amazing role model too boot. Great job, Brooke, and congratulations on 5th place. We’ll be watching in Paris 2024!
All in all, we should consider climbing’s Olympic debut to be a success. No climbing competition is perfect, and this was no exception, but it has opened the doors for more professionalism and capital in the sport, and likely has exposed the endeavor to millions. In Paris 2024, speed climbing will be a separate event from bouldering and sport, which should solve many of the most common complaints from athletes, organizers, and spectators. It’s going to be great!
Header photo courtesy of Louder Than 11
By Eric Jerome
Marketing Assistant
