In sport climbing events at the Olympics, athletes climb up a tall wall using different holds and grips.
Athletes use their strength, flexibility, and problem-solving skills to choose a path to the top of the wall. Rock climbing is an event for both men and women. There are three parts to the competition:
Bouldering: The wall is 4.5 metres high and athletes climb without ropes. The competition has three rounds: the qualifications, semi-finals, and finals. Each round has different sets of boulder problems, and the climbers have four minutes to attempt each problems. At the end, the climbers are ranked according to the problems they have completed.
Speed: The competition is a race between two athletes climbing up a 15-metre wall, side-by-side, on an identical course. Athletes race against the clock up a 15 metre high wall. It is a quick event lasting as little as five or seven seconds. The first to the top wins and moves to the next round.
Lead: Athletes climb as high as they can on a 15 metre wall in six minutes. The routes are more challenging in this event. Climbers have a limited time to inspect the route before climbing, and must climb the route without seeing other climbers or receive any form of feedback or advice from others. Competitors clip their rope into pre-placed quickdraws along the route. The climber to make it the furtherest along the route is declared the winner.
Rock climbers must choose the route for their climb up the wall
Free image from Unsplash
Sport climbing began as an Olympic sport at the Tokyo 2020 Games.
Watch a video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJNyylYDp0Q
These are the women and men competitors at the Toyo 2020 Games
In earlier Olympic Games, in 1896, 1904, 1924, and 1932 sport climbing was a part of the artistic gymnastics program. It was called rope climbing.