National coach Stöcker criticizes route construction at Olympia: "Partial arrogant and ignorant"

Five years, the climbing scene went to the games in Tokyo, broke the heads through the "Olympic Combined" mode and deliver hot discussions. And yet all athletes and athlete who wanted to Tokyo have finally arranged with this format, though many with great abdominal pain. And that specifically with the men.

The "King of climbers" as a random Olympic champion?

Because the three-belation from a sprint discipline (Speed), a athletic acrobatics maximum force discipline (bouldering) and a stamina discipline (lead) magnifies the "King of the climbers", but Stöcker is sure that "Ten compensation ten times a different winner may hang the gold medal around his neck".

What the viewer is an incredibly exciting show - and of course the climbing industry as the Olympic newcomer must also serve exactly these claims if you want to be part of the Olympic program over 2024, the athletes not only stress physically to their limits but especially Mental. The vast majority of those who have previously expressed their experiences at the Olympic Games, languages ​​of "unbearable pressure" (Janja Garnbret), "a bad dream" (Tomoa Narasaki) and for many it was simply the "hardest competition of their career ".

Lopez Lomong || Refugee to Flag Bearer

How does one win the gold medal in sport climbing? And why?

In principle, there is nothing to complain about, because the top sport is not a petting zoo, yet there are two construction sites that burden the competition climbing. And this in areas that are paramount to athletes, such as viewers. It's about simple questions: How does one win the gold medal in sports climbing? And why?

In the second, when the Austrian Jakob Schubert climbed in the lead at Adam Ondras reached Handle 42+ and thus gathered one in this discipline, he rinsed the Czechs in the overall ranking of place one and gold in six place. And at the same time, Schubert made the Spaniard Alberto Gines Lopez to the Olympic champion, who did not realize his triumph for some time. Not out of overwhelming, but because he could not simply understand the result right away.

Because the placements are multiplied by the three disciplines, the conclusion of the rankings "brutal and unpredictable" is criticized to stirring. "The athletes can only assess their achievements very hard, are confused what their performance is worth. In the end, the exit felt like diced," says Stöcker.

The athletes can only assess their achievements very hard, are unsettled what their performance is worth. In the end, the exit felt like diced.

National coach Urs Stöcker

And so triumphed with Gines Lopez an athlete, which in the discipline bouldering of a total of seven routes only one topped, in the qualification at three out of four boulder problems did not reach the zone and remained in the final as the only one without top grip. Not that the 18-year-old Spaniard does not treat this success. But the question of whether a deserved Olympic champion was nominated at the premiere of this sport could not answer the athletes involved, the coaches nor the spectators - among them IOC President Thomas Bach. But that should be absolutely possible with a competition that goes on for two days and around eleven hours of competition climbing.

Of course, the native Swiss Stöcker looks at his verdict by the DAV glasses, because just for the two German climbers Jan Hojer and Alex Megos the competition was extremely bitter. The qualification for the final of the best eight missed the duo as the 12th and Neunter - both had to hold a top handle at the boulder only one second longer and they would have been in the distribution of medals to have to fly home prematurely. A scenario that seemed completely excluded for national coach Stöcker in advance. "With a departure before the final we did not work."

Megos: Strong Boulder not rewarded

Especially the Erlanger Megos delivered a very good boulder performance. Of the a total of 20 athletes started in the qualification, the 28-year-old belonged to a trio (with Mickael Mawem and Tomoa Narasaki), which reached all four zone handles. But because only the number of top handles reached in the ranking counts, Megos became "only" sixth instead of third parties in the Boulder qualification. "We have been discussing the rating for boulder for a long time. We need more graduating possibilities, and a very good solution would be another zone," Stöcker performs.

Laid a strong idea of ​​bouldering, but this was only conditioned: Alex Megos. Imago Images / Aflossport

We have long discussed the rate of bouldering for a long time. We need more graduation options, and a very good solution would be another zone.

Urs Stöcker

If in the evaluation, however, is distinguished between zone and top grip, the top athletes move to a similar level. Consequently, the respective number of experiments need to decide to achieve a zone or a top handle. A criterion that leads to no way to make the competition for the spectators transparent and comprehensible.

From Stöckers view, however, these are topics that are in the river. At the 2024 Olympic Games, there will no longer be the format "Olympic Combined", but two medal rates in sport climbing will be awarded - once for speed and once for the combination of bouldering and lead. But then with added results and not like in Tokyo with multiplied placements, which the ranking completely reinforcing.

Stöcker criticizes route construction sharp: "Partial arrogant and ignorant"

However, as much more important, Stöcker considers that the interaction between athletes, coaches and the route setters improves in the field of bouldering. "Some who screws the boulder problems to the wall, opposes an ordered feedback culture," says stoke and calls these route builders "partially arrogant and ignorant", they behave "often like artists who fight against everything their work of art asks. All suggestions that come from the climbing community will gladly understand you as a reproach, "says Stöcker. "For me, this attitude is not execious."

Concretely, Stöcker relates its desiring verdict to a boulder problem in the qualification. In the fourth and last boulder, there was a so-called hand crack, in which the athletes had to put their outstretched hand in a four centimeter wide gap to pull themselves upwards. "This is an element for climbing outside on the rock and not for the competition," scolds stirring and pushes that "Many of the coaches share this opinion". In fact, it was possible to see that the extremely harsh competition walls were massively claiming the hands of the athletes and led to cracks at this point.

Schubert uses the last chance - and brings bronze

After all, three athletes got a top handle on this boulder - Adam Ondra, Alexei Rubtsov and Jakob Schubert. The latter would failed without achieving this one top grip may failed crazing at the final feed. But however, the 30-year-old Innsbrucker continued and won the bronze medal with a homelanded performance in the lead final. At least that noble metal was deserved, no one doubted.

Eight men, seven candidates, three medals: These are the candidates

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