Climbing Sparkling Moments - EN La Sportiva

The Climbing Community. Every self-respecting sport, to be considered such, must satisfy some requests, some more formal, others less. The formal ones are, for example, necessary to be included in the Olympic program, such as being practiced in an adequate number of countries, being supported by a federation or being inclusive towards all genders. The informal requests, on the other hand, are those that make up its history and its narration: characters, events, but also and above all places that become real sanctuaries of practice. Let's discover them together in the last episode of the first season of Sparkling Moments and understand why the climbing community is so different from all the others.

The Nose pt.2: Jorg Verhoeven. The second episode dedicated to the famous face of El Captain (USA), the route that for decades has engaged thousands of climbers, intent on challenging each other on Changing Corners: one of the most complex pitches ever to overcome. The difficulty lies in discovering the right technique to leave it behind, using logic and changing approaches until something works and takes you to the top. In the company of Jorg Veroheven, let’s discover one of the climbers most identified with The Nose, the change of perspective necessary to repeat Lynn Hill's exploits and overcome that dreaded pitch. Enjoy listening.

The Nose pt.1: Lynn Hill. Going against common thinking, changing perspective and not conforming is what makes climbers fascinating to mere mortals. The protagonist of this sparkling moment is a young woman, as small as she is determined: Lynn Hill, an American climber thirsty for challenges. For her Lynn sport climbing was not enough, she didn’t want to be considered "only" a woman. And so in 1993, Lynn, decided to climb the Nose of El Capitan, a wall considered impossible for any climber at the time. And Lynn, against all stereotypes, makes it, giving a historical shock to the world of climbing. And if you have framed the protagonist of this short intro, you will understand that it certainly did not end here because we are dealing with a real game changer, word of ... Adam Ondra.

Free Solo. In this episode we retrace an incredible feat ... worthy of an Oscar. Jennifer Lopez, Chadwick Boseman, Pharrel Williams ... were all in Los Angeles that night. And yes, he was there too: Alex Honnold, the first climber in history on the Hollywood red carpet. The first to free solo without a rope the most famous face of El Captain. It is June 3, 2017 when the film crew directed by the expert climber and filmmaker Jimmy Chin finds himself filming a documentary that is to put it midly, quite peculiar ... shooting every scene at the first take. The protagonist is Alex Honnold and the plot is the ascent of the Freerider wall, of El Capitan, in Free Solo. There is no margin for error, there is no "cut! Let's do it again". A misstep here would not only result in the end of the documentary. It is certainly not for everyone to decide to climb a wall of great difficulty untied and with video cameras around. The witnesses and the protagonist tell us about it, in an Oscar-winning story.

The Trad Climbing. UK 1998: we are in the midst of the English punk scene, of non-conformism. And it is in England that a new way of thinking about climbing begins to emerge, a new way immediately called TRAD, which stands for traditional. Yes, because the rock must be left as it is and climbed without giving too much advantage to the human being over the mountain. The mental stability and the mood of the climber are the most important part, as well as ethics, respect for the rock element, which must never be violated. It is a new form of vertical exploration that requires great control and perfection. For many Brits, climbing was this from the very beginning, before sport climbing. Let's discover together the history of the English TRAD scene thanks to its best exponents. We are guided by James Pearsons, Jacopo Larcher, Hazel Findlay.

Climbing Walls. 1987, the Rock Master competition gives rise to the idea of the first artificial walls. A climber suddenly slips on the rock that comes off, distorting the first races. We need a more stable, safer and identical competition ground for all climbers competing. Climbing must adapt and become a real sport, fair and safe for athletes and at the same time visible by a large number of spectators without having to challenge the unpredictability of the mountain: artificial walls and dedicated stadiums are needed. This is how the first artificial climbing walls were born, the playground pre-cut today by thousands of climbers who have never even touched the rock. Yes, this too is a fundamental sparkling moment for this sport. The protagonists tell us the story, as always. Enjoy listening.