From 3 to 6 August the Aomi Urban Sports Park hosts the Sports Climbing competitions of the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Games. This sport enters the 5-circle program for the first time and does so with 3 different specialties: Lead, Bouldering and Speed which they will also help to compose the combined ranking.
At the Aomi Urban Sport Park, a temporary facility with a panoramic view of Tokyo Bay, the 7,100 spectators admitted to each session will be able to see the awarding of the first Olympic medals in the history of this sport on August 4th for men's competitions and on August 5th. as for the female ones.
and general, and then more and more specific for the discipline and with the aid of overloads, will allow the athlete to be able to sustain the effort necessary for the competition. In the second phase, that of training on the field, psychological stability will also play a fundamental role as the athletes will be called to carry out efforts, often extreme, many meters from the ground and, especially for beginners, the mental aspects should not be neglected.
Each of the three disciplines will then adopt some precautions during the preparation phase: the Lead specialists, being a discipline with increasing difficulty, will have to prefer strength resistance training while for Boulder, being an effort that involves few movements and long holding moments , you will also have to work on isometric exercises. Finally, Speed specialists will need a complete workout as they will have to climb the wall in the shortest possible time, thus favoring maximum power, i.e. the ability to express the maximum amount of force in the shortest possible time.
Lead climbing
It is also called "specialty of difficulty" and consists in "climbing a wall that initially presents a low degree of difficulty and then proposes increasingly challenging obstacles.
An increasing score is assigned to each hold: the "hold" score is attributed if there is a "complete" grip while the "used" score is attributed if the contested leads to a movement that does not allow the next hold to be reached. .
By inserting the rope into the last carabiner of the route, called the Top, or arriving with both hands on the last hold, the maximum score is awarded.
This is the oldest specialty of Climbing and is inspired by climbing on natural walls, the maximum time to take home a medal in Tokyo 2020 will be the traditional one of 6 minutes.
Boulder Climbing
It is the specialty that involves difficulty levels on a wall that reaches a maximum height of 5 meters. The athlete does not wear safety harnesses, which are compensated by the protections placed at the base of the wall.
The start takes place in the "start" position, ie with all 4 limbs resting on mandatory holds, and at the start you must quickly climb up to the "top" position, keeping it safely. Generally the exercise does not exceed 8 movements and the athlete has 4 "or 5" to complete each difficulty level.
Speed Climbing
It is the speed specialty that involves climbing a 15m wall with low difficulty levels in the shortest possible time. direct with the first who will access the next round.
Indoor Sport Climbing
In Tokyo 2020 the Climbing competitions will be staged inside an outdoor facility, which provides for a partial covering of the walls to partially protect them from the scorching sun expected in the Japanese summer, but generally in recent years all the facilities dedicated to this discipline they are indoor type.
In Italy, especially in the northern regions, many facilities have been inaugurated in the recent past, thus allowing the development of this sport which, thanks also to its inclusion in the Olympic program, is becoming increasingly popular. In 2019 a of the largest gyms in Europe dedicated to bouldering with over 850 square meters available to sportsmen, a few months earlier Milan had become the protagonist with the renovation of an old 2500 square meter shed where it is possible to practice Lead, Boulder and Speed.
- Shoes: they are minimal, ultralight and with soles designed to make the user feel the grip perfectly. On the market we find dozens of variants with hard or soft compounds and with high or low grip.
- Harness and rope: often supplied directly by the gym, these are the indispensable accessories in the Lead and Speed specialties to be able to safely climb the wall. The high quality of the materials used is essential to avoid unpleasant accidents.
- Brake: it is the accessory used to secure the carabiner and they are generally self-locking so that in the event of a fall they automatically stop the descent.
- Clothing: as the walls are extremely abrasive, it is advisable to choose resistant clothing and, especially for beginners, with long sleeves in order to limit contact between the skin and external elements. In winter, if it is very cold, it is advisable to wear thermal underwear.
Shutterstock The equipment that is used during sport climbing training For further information: Trekking shoes, best models For further information: Sport Sandals for Trekking and Outdoor: models for men, women, children as regards climbing:
- Tuesday 3 August at 5 pm (9 am in Italy): Speed, Bouldering and Lead Male Qualifications
- Wednesday 4 August at 5 pm (9 am in Italy): Speed, Bouldering and Lead Female Qualifications
- Thursday 5 August at 5.30 pm (9.30 am in Italy): Speed, Bouldering and Lead Men Finals
- Friday 6 August at 5.30 pm (9.30 am in Italy): Speed, Bouldering and Lead Female Finals
