Sport climbing

Sport climbing is a form of free climbing, its modern expression in the late 1960s and early 1970s, was born in the USA and has since spread internationally with large growth rates. The roots of the sport climbing are in free climbing thoughts, which developed in the Saxon Switzerland and spread over Fritz Wiessner in the U.S.. Here, the climbing world was revolutionized. In the western part of Germany and in the Alpine countries sport climbing enforced in 1977, after the first ascent of the route "pump cracks " by Reinhard Karl, the unlimited opening of the UIAA difficulty scale up.

In contrast to the classic mountain climbing sport climbing mountaineering less, but more sporty designs are in the foreground; instead of reaching a summit, it's in sport climbing about, that is, mostly high technical difficulty over short distances to overcome the climbing route in itself. The term refers not only to the climbing on natural rock, but also on the Climbing on artificial systems such as in the climbing gym.

In sport climbing rope and hooks are usually used only as a backup and are not used for locomotion. Most often climbed in two rope teams, where a person is on the ground or is fixed in a stand and secure, while at the other person climbs. Is diminishing techniques with which a single person while climbing itself secures ( solo climbing). If omitted entirely a backup, one speaks of free solo climbing.

Sport climbing is operated both as a popular sport as well as a competitive sport. As a movement, including modern sport climbing not only purely technical climbing or sporting aspects, but a whole way of life, often applied values ​​are "cool ", spontaneity, creativity, hedonism or freedom lived expressed in the.

• 5.1 Difficulties and Lead Climbing
• 5.2 bouldering
• 5.3 speed

• 6.1 Development and pedagogical aspects
• 6.2 Organization, environment and social integration
• 6.3 Exercise - number of climbers

Accruals for alpine climbing

While in classic mountain climbing often defeating a mountain in the foreground, it's in sport climbing largely a matter of routes (often at their own power limit ) in the sense of free climbing to deal with. Sport climbing routes are usually much shorter (usually 10-30 m, sometimes up to 100 m) and often extend only over a single rock. The routes are mostly hedged with fixed and mounted at short intervals bolts. Through the narrow hook spacing and the optimal fixed securing points the risk of injury is lower in a fall compared to falls in alpine terrain, which allows camber and thus to climb to the to the power limit. But partly also need such as mobile securing means such as Friends or slips are mounted in alpine style. If only securing mobile agents are used, then it is called this type of climbing "clean climbing" because the route taken after climbing back into the natural state, thus " cleansed" is. In addition, the dangers of climbing areas are smaller by nature such as avalanches or rockfall as under alpine conditions.

The boundary between sport climbing and alpine climbing is due to the development of the protection equipment become fluid. The game form of alpine sport climbing moves in this ill-defined border area for traditional alpine climbing. There are former alpine routes that are now protected well and have become light sport climbing routes. On the other hand, beat today's top climbers, even under alpine conditions with, depending on the route even worse hedging or no hedging fixed material difficulties, as it is typical for sport climbing. So there are now also alpine sport climbing routes of several hundred meters in length and technical difficulty to the eleventh UIAA difficulty.

Forms of security

Sport climbing is a sport in which it may crash the climber through the top of the rocks. For this reason it is necessary to use a climbing rope and a secured climbing partner. There are different forms of saving and being secured. Basically, lead climbing, Topropeklettern, Nachstiegsklettern and unsecured climbing can be distinguished.

Climbing styles in rock climbing

Sport climbing routes can be increased in several ways. These types of climbing are called climbing styles. It does not have all climbing styles the same sporting value. What has what sporting value, is the generally accepted result of the advancing discussion among all climbers each. Now regarded as a pure only - with decreasing value - the on-sight, the flash and the redpoint. The Red Cross commission is still not recognized as a full-fledged commission. The through climbing a route with other styles such as AF or A0 is not recognized as commission and serves only to practicing in preparation for a stylistically recognized ascent of the route.

In the redpoint the goal is to fall free ascent of a route or rope length " in a train " on it's own, within the meaning of free climbing. The belay and the rope may be loaded at any time of the commission (eg, to rest in the middle of a route ). As a classic redpoint counts only deal with a route in lead climbing, with the mounting of all intermediate backups from the climbing position. When on-sight climbing, the same rules apply as for the red point climbing, in addition, however, demanded that the commission on the first attempt must succeed. Here, the climber must also have no prior information, caused by own earlier attempts by statements of other climbers or previous observation by other climbers on the route. Even while climbing the actor from other climbers may get shouted no tips. Users are, however, a precise optical analysis from the ground. In contrast to redpoint you accordingly in each route only get one chance, the route on-sight to commit. If you have a climber on the route observed before the commission or get tips about this route, a trapdoor only applies as a flash commission. Again: There is only the first attempt a flash opportunity.

The Red Cross is a redpoint ascent without lead climbing with safety rope from above. Since in this form, the mental component ( fear of falling ) is required in comparison to the pre- rise red point climbing less pronounced, this style is considered as not being adequate. For example, you can erstbegehen so no new route sport climbing excessively. Nevertheless, he is still just recognized as a style with which a route can be walked. This shows, for example, the fact that it still points awarded for on the ranking page 8a.nu. AF stands for all free (all free) and refers to the floorboard of a route in which all movements (all) their own power within the meaning of free climbing ( free ) were completed. In contrast to the above styles but may not of importance hanging on the material, pause be made. It must be climbed from the last occupied before the break climbing position. So it is not allowed to use the rest to resolve a position from which a further climbing is not possible. The climbing style A0 belongs to the technical climbing. A represents artificiel (French for "artificial" ), A0 is the first difficulty. Such a commission permit the holding or moving with the help of rope and bolts or other intermediate backups. In sport climbing, this style is used exclusively in preparation for a subsequent commission of a recognized style. As a climbing style A0- climbing is not recognized.

Game forms of sport climbing

The sport climbing can be operated in various ways. This game shapes overlap partially. An average climbers always practiced several forms of play. Differentiation criteria may be the motivation, the place, the condition of the walls, hedging and other. The common of all forms of games is the requirement of the commission recognized style.

Difficulty climbing

In contrast to Plaisir climbing is the difficulty climbing climbing in the medium and high levels of difficulty - mostly on the personal power and fall line - in the foreground. Lintels are doing, consciously taken to the attainment of the climbing success in purchasing. Laymen kind of climbing is sometimes referred to as undifferentiated extreme climbing.

If the climber decides the route on- sight or flash to try, he has to only one attempt. If no on-sight ascent is attempted or it fails, the route is for personal climbing project whose goal is a successful redpoint climb-through. Various steps can be taken:

• The preparation of the route with the aim to mount the quickdraws and a rope for subsequent top-rope inspections. This step is handled frequently and in the form of technical climbing.
• The Ausbouldern the route with the aim to learn the movements for the individual road. Because rested here in AF climbing style on the hook or the rope hanging, the climbing sections reduce to short sequences, as is otherwise the case in bouldering.
• The Rotpunktversuche in which the climber trying to climb the route redpoint. Here is climbed until the fall or abandonment by a holding or resting on the bolts.
• The trapdoor in which the climber climbs the route redpoint.
• The termination, in which the personal material is removed from the route.

Depending on how difficult the route compared to personal performance, the climber can begin directly with the Ausbouldern or with the Rotpunktversuchen.

Bouldering

Bouldering is climbing in jump height. Therefore, safety rope and harness missing. Major items of equipment are climbing shoes, chalk bag, a, a toothbrush ( brush around the handles for better friction), a carpet to clean the shoes and a boulder mat ( crash pad to absorb falls and prevent foot injuries ). So-called boulder problems can consist of only a few trains vertical, horizontal or transverse but they may extend as far as desired.

Boulderer irritates it to use for a relatively short climbing route all climbing abilities in particularly concentrated form.

Most individual passages must be tried several times or even often practiced in order to optimally solve a boulder problem. Since boulder problems often require complex movement patterns, it goes into a first creative step to finding out how the movements work. It is the puzzle to solve the problem mentally.

Boulder difficulties are suppressed in the Fontainebleau scale from (Fb ).

Alpine Climbing

Since the beginning of sport climbing, the climbers were not limited to the climbing areas. Also in the alpine and high alpine terrain, multi-pitch routes and their individual pitches in Rotpunktstil be free climbed. The transfer of the achievements of the difficulty of climbing on high alpine walls was described by Wolfgang Güllich as a logical and compelling development.

The main difference to classic alpine climbing is in the broad sense - regardless of the quality of the hedge - the sport climbing moderately acknowledged committing style with which the route is climbed. In the narrow sense, one can under alpine climbing but also summarize only those routes that also rock solid and good, permanently installed backup agent in addition to the redpoint - usually bolts - have. In contrast to the climbing garden is in alpine sports climbing always about multi-pitch routes.

Alpine climbing requires the climber additional mountaineering skills, for example, about meteorology, orientation, alpine dangers and rescue techniques. The effect of these additional requirements that in alpine sports climbing the pure difficulty of cogency loses.

Further subdivisions

Outdoor climbing

Under outdoor climbing is meant climbing outdoors on natural rocks and walls.

Indoor Climbing / Indoor Climbing

The term indoor climbing indoor climbing or referred climbing in the climbing gym or on private domestic training walls. Due to the ever- growing range of indoor climbing increasing the number of indoor climbers. Most gym climbing go sooner or later for outdoor climbing. However, there are also a growing number of rock climbers that remain in the longer term, in the sense of a pure fitness sport in the climbing gym. Conversely, however, also increases the acceptance of the climbing gym as winter training for convinced outdoor climbers. The climbing walls are along with the Plaisir Climbing essential support the development of sport climbing into a popular sport.

Buildering

Under Buildering or urban climbing refers to climbing on artificial walls and buildings. In cities such as Berlin, to the few natural rocks are found to be legally climbed on old bunkers and similar buildings. Higher tours are hedged analogous to normal climbing routes with fixed bolts.

Traditional climbing (Trad Climbing )

As Traditional climbing is defined as the climbing routes on rock walls without bolts with normal hooks, slips and terminal devices.

Clean - climbing

As Clean climbing is referred to the only clamping wedges and clamping devices secured climbing rock walls with the intention to leave no permanent marks as possible to the rock in the commission. Clean climbing is part of the traditional climbing, but in contrast, prohibits the use of pitons, as they will damage the wrapping often the rock, or after the commission can not be removed. The security of the clamping wedges also depends crucially on the stone in which they are used. While Chocks keep you safe in the granite and sandstone for the correct insert in the rule, they are limestone and dolomite rock a special, hard -to-calculate risk factor. This may sometimes be a factor, so the clean- climbing has always remained a marginal phenomenon in European sport climbing.

Free solo climbing

Free solo climbing is climbing without a rope above the jump height.

Deep Water Soloing

Deep water soloing is free solo climbing over deep water so that the climber fall in the event of a fall into the water.

Plaisir climbing

The term Plaisir climbing (or climbing enjoyment ) was introduced in 1992 by Jürg von Känel with the title of climbing guidebook called " Switzerland Plaisir ". As Plaisir climbers in those which, if mainly in the lower and middle levels of difficulty for enjoyment (French: plaisir ) climbing.

In order to classify a route as Plaisir route, it needs to a suitably mild to moderate difficulty, solid rock and very low risk of rock falls, a hedge with bolts, which allows for safe climbing for everyone, and a rather short, low-risk ascent and descent. As the limit for lead climbing is, within the meaning of Känels, about the difficulty level 7 ( UIAA ) and 6c (French ) considered. Often such climbing opportunities for adults and children are equally suitable and therefore for the entire family. The disadvantage of Plaisir climbing areas or routes is the large number of climbers and thereby partially heavily worn ( " stripped down " ) rock.

Overall, the Plaisir climbing is next to the indoor climbing the most widely used form of play for sport climbing and a significant component of the development is not primarily on performance and difficulty oriented grassroots sport.

As with any variety of climbing, there is a residual risk that at Plaisir climbing as opposed to traditionally safe free climbing routes is relatively low and predictable, however. Underestimating In no event shall Plaisir alpine routes, since independent potential hazards such as rockfall or weather changes are possible from the route security.

Competition Climbing

Climbing competitions are held almost exclusively on artificial climbing walls. International will host the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC ) from World Championships, World Cups and Continental Championships in the categories of men, women, youth and juniors ( with various subcategories). In international sport is climbed in three disciplines: difficulty or lead climbing, bouldering and speed climbing.

In addition to these official competitions at the international level, there are still various master competitions, such as the Rock Master in Arco (Italy ), which have a high status and often have a longer tradition than the official competitions. These competitions are partly different disciplines such as the after-work, in which the climber will have the opportunity to practice for a certain time in the route, or the duel - climbing, a mixture of speed and lead climbing, before. Also see National competitions are held in the Lead, Speed ​​and Bouldering, which are carried out by partly slightly modified national regulations. In addition to the carried out according to official regulations competitions, there are numerous regional competitions with some entirely new disciplines such as marathon climbing or bouldering Nights, in which often the fun of climbing is in the foreground and the placement is secondary.

Difficulty or lead climbing

→ Main article: difficulty climbing

When difficulty climbing according to the rules of the IFSC, the climbers must try while leading them in a hitherto unknown route onsight climbing as far as possible, in the best case to the upper end ( top ), climb. The routes for international competitions are at least 15 m long and are built by the route setters specially for this competition. The qualification, semi-final and final rounds will each climbed on three different routes that are more difficult from round to round. Can the final two or more climbers climb the final route to the end and these climbers have reached the same level in the previous rounds, they must compete in a further difficult Super Final route against each other.

Before the competition, all climbers must jointly inspect the route five minutes from the ground. During the race itself, all participants who are not yet climbed, stay in an isolation zone from which they can not see the wall. This avoids that they observe the start in front of them participants in their experiments and learn from their mistakes. Each climber has for his attempt a generous time limit, he shall not exceed, otherwise plays the time he needed for the commission, no role for the placement.

Bouldering

→ Main article: Bouldering

In bouldering, the climber has to climb about three to four meters high boulder problems that are constructed as the Lead Climbing specially for the competition. At official national and international competitions are to be solved in qualifying four to six boulder problems. The fewer tests are needed, the better the rating. In part, the maximum number of authorized attempts is predetermined. For the solution of the athletes have two to three hours and can observe each other. In the semi-finals and the final four boulder problems to be solved. The climber can not observe each other and have an unlimited number of attempts, however, is the time that is available depending Boulder, predefined. When mastered applies a boulder when he's climbed from the starting handle and comes to Topgriff. The Topgriff must be kept controlled with both hands two seconds. The bonus handle is located approximately in the middle of the Boulders, this is achieved, the problem is considered a " half solved ". The fewer trials are needed to cope with the problem, or at least to reach the bonus handle, the more points the climber. Between the individual bouldering, the climber gets six ( in the finals more ) minute break.

Speed

→ Main article: Speed ​​Climbing

When it comes to speed climbing, as quickly as possible to climb a route in toprope, so secured from above. The competition will occur, always round two climbers in the knockout system on two possible identical, juxtaposed routes against each other. They climb, with a short break each once per page. The two times are added and the total of faster moves into the next round.

Since the summer of 2007, an increasingly exact same 15 or 10 meters high wall standard is used in international competitions. Through the normalized wall world records can be set up since about fifteen meters, this is currently at 6.37 s [ 15m ] (as of July 17, 2011 ).

Social significance of sport climbing

The following remarks refer mainly to Central Europe and the German -speaking world.

Development and educational aspects

At the beginning of the 1980s, the sport climbing was still a movement of breaking out of the existing conventions and also took this a revolutionary paint which was also reflected in the strongly contrasting of the classic alpinist appearance of the actors. Today, however, the sport climbing is an established sport. After initial irritation sport climbing was quickly integrated into the alpine clubs, but has also seen as effective tool of teaching - represented by the experiential learning about school sports, health promotion, social rehabilitation and inclusive nature sports on the Alpine clubs out in society. The climbing itself, and especially the more accessible sport climbing attributed many positive aspects for personality education, health care and natural bond, so is also very good for youth work of the Alpine Associations.

A special feature of the sport climbing is that each Performers may set its own challenges in self-determination, that is, the degree requirement is not imposed by an external organization, but even elected. The sporty component, the occupation is with this self-imposed challenge and is primarily not a competition against a competitor. This also has a special ability is given as social educational tool.

Another aspect conducive applies the highest concentration on the here and now. The risk and fear experience at low risk objectively promotes the weighing of risks, overcoming unreasonable fears is trained border and flow experiences are possible. The movement tasks always new questions require physical and mental creativity, cooperation in the roped -shouldered responsibility and trust ( individuality and community experience ). Moreover, the value of the experience of nature is emphasized.

Organization, environment and social integration

Although the alpine associations have taken up the sport climbing quickly and provide appropriate groups in their club activity, but a big part of sport climbers practices the sport disorganized. The acceptance of the sport climbing by conservation organizations and the general public is regionally very different. For example, while climbing in Tyrol is advertised as a form of sustainable tourism and promoted, it is elsewhere severely restricted, eg in the neighboring Vorarlberg.

In sport climbing areas of the Central German Uplands of blocking pressure is greater, here are for the preservation of climbing interest communities created by climbers - so-called IG climbing because the climber part not looked adequately represented by the Alpine Association DAV in their interests. At the same time, there are some regions of Italy, France, Austria and Switzerland established and sponsored by region or country projects that have dedicated themselves to the development of the rocks and the improvement of climbing sports infrastructure to the positive effects of climbing usable both for their own population to make, and in order to promote tourism. But state grants are given for the construction of climbing walls and artificial climbing structures in Germany generally.

Exercise - number of climbers

The sport climbing has developed from a niche sport to a recreational sport. Because of the possibility of exercising the sport disorganized, there are difficulties to raise reliable figures. In addition, there are various forms of play with smooth transitions and thus an exact definition of sport climbing is unclear. Due to the strong increase in recent years range of artificial climbing structures but has quite sure the number of people who climb at least sporadically, increased significantly. The German Alpine Club called in 2010 as the figure for Germany 300,000 people in Europe 2 million, a total of about 40,000 climbers are accepted for Switzerland.

Risk of injury

In contrast to alpine climbing sport climbing is not the risk of injury from a fall, but because of overload in the foreground. Rock climbing is extremely stressful for the skin, tendons and ring bands. The slightly concave shape of the palm, both the small hand muscle groups as well as tendon sheaths become overloaded with heavy or long-lasting stress. In the area of ​​the finger to prevent injury of the metacarpophalangeal, proximal interphalangeal and digital distal as well as the support of the ring bands is important. Especially when bouldering is therefore often used tape to support, for example, the endangered ring bands. Depending on the route profile, especially on sharp-edged cracks and ledges, a tape can also be used protecting against cuts and skin cracks. A tape on the elbow is usually used for the prophylaxis of tendon inflammation. At the wrist a protective dressing is against strains at reduced or Seitgriffen.