Welcome to Behind The Wall, a weekly newsletter published every Saturday.
Each week, I highlight the favourite things I’ve watched, read and listened to from the world of indoor and competition climbing. I also track where you can buy competition tickets during the World Cup season.
Over the last week, we had the last World Cup before the Olympics, as well as content from the OQS coming out from the Olympics. Climbing Gold continue its interview series with US-based Olympic athletes interviewing Brooke Raboutou. We also dive into what professionalism means for routesetters with Holly Chen on the Impact Driver Podcast and for belayers with Jinni Xia on the That’s Not Read Climbing Podcast.
I know there is lots of great content that I don’t know about. Let me know at behindthewall@inside-climbing.com, and I’ll give you a shout-out if I feature it.
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Watch
- I Trained With USA Olympic Climbers For A Day | Hannah Morris Bouldering. Nathan and Hannah go climbing with Jesse Grupper and Natalia Grossman in the USA Training Centre alongside other international athletes.
- Matt Groom returns with the World Climbing Club at the Chamonix and Briançon Lead World Cups. He shares behind-the-scenes interviews and content alongside a highlights recap.
- Climbing with South Korean Moonboard Legend Hoseok Lee | Jonathan Sin. Jonathan Sin goes climbing with Moonboard royalty Hoseok Lee. After warming up on some of the set problems in the gym, the move onto the 2016 Moonboard.
- Got the Olympia ticket! My thoughts and little insights | Alex Megos. Alex gives his thoughts and insights on the OQS series and qualifying for the Olympics for a second time.
- The Secret training method of the World’s strongest climber - Alex Megos | Magnus Midtbø. Go for a climbing session with Magnus and Alex and find out what makes Alex so strong.
- Onsight from Black Diamond. Follow Seneida Biendarra in her first paraclimbing competition in Salt Lake City last year.
- Hear more about the athlete’s journeys to the Olympics at the OQS events in Shanghai and Budapest. Featuring Erik Noya, Andrea Rojas, Zach Hammer, Sean McColl, Mia Krampl, Hannes van Duysen and Annie Sanders.
Read
- John Burgman, author of High Drama chronicling the history of American competition climbing, offers his opinion on which male and female athletes to watch out for at the Olympics for Climbing Magazine.
- Jenya Kazbekova and Yaroslav Tkach: The Ukrainian Climbers in Paris 2024 Amid War | UK Climbing. Ukrainian writer Anna Schliakova interviews both Ukrainian Olympic athletes Jenya Kazbekova and Yaroslav Tkach for UK climbing.
Listen
- Brooke Raboutou: Paris Bound | Climbing Gold. Fitz and Alex continue their Olympic Series, where they talk with Brooke Raboutou in between the OQS events. Learn about her journey to the 2024 Olympics, how she has learned to deal with the mental pressure of competing, and the success of Team ABC set up by Brooke’s mother, Robyn Erbesfield-Raboutou.
- On Eye-Pro, Ugly Boulders, and Influencers – Kegan Minock | Impact Driver Podcast (CBJ). Holly Chen and Kegan Minock talk about professionalism in routesetting, social media’s impact on routesetting, and why you should set to your strengths.
- Noah Makaiwi, Head Belayer | That’s Not Real Climbing Podcast. Jinni talks with Noah Makaiwi about belaying at competitions and the professionalism of belayers in their craft. Learn why they use tube-style belay devices to give the best catches, the complexity of paraclimbing belaying, and the worst belaying incidents he has seen in competitions.
International Climbing Competition Tickets
The competition season has started, so here is the rundown of where you can find World Cup and OQS tickets.
- The Olympics (France) August 5 – 10th. Some tickets for the Olympics are coming up through the official resale platform.
- World Youth Championship in Guiyang (China) August 22 – 31. Tickets are yet to be announced.
- European Championship in Villars (Switzerland) August 23 – September 1. The event will be free to attend and tickets are not needed.
- Paraclimbing European Championship in Villars (Switzerland) August 24 – 25. The event will be free to attend and tickets are not needed.
- Koper (Slovenia) September 6 – 7. Tickets for the semi-final and final will be available for pre-sale from July 8th – August 24th at the Koper 2024 World Cup site.
- Prague (Czechia) World Cup September 20 – 22. VIP tickets are sold out, and seated tickets are almost sold out, but standing tickets are still available.
- Paraclimbing World Cup in Arco (Italy) September 27 – 28. The event will be free to attend and tickets are not needed.
- Seoul World Cup October 2 – 6. Tickets are yet to be announced
- Asian Continental Championship in Tai’an (China) October 10 – 14. Tickets are yet to be announced.
- IFSC Madrid 4 Speed (Spain) October 18 – 20. Tickets are yet to be announced.
- Pan American Championship in Santiago (Chile) November 18 – 24. Tickets are yet to be announced.
That’s a Wrap
I hope you enjoyed this edition of Behind the Wall. Let me know what you think at behindthewall@insideclimbing.com or DM me on Instagram.
See you next week!
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