Sport climbing set to change at Paris 2024: an adequate improvement?

After criticism of the format used at Tokyo 2020, which combined all three disciplines into one event, Paris will split the competition up into two categories: bouldering and lead combined, and speed climbing on its own. Does this separation of the specialties allow athletes to better target their training, or are bouldering and lead still too different to be grouped?

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games introduced an array of new sports and events to the competition, with sport climbing being one of them. Competitors took part in a climber’s triathlon of sorts, participating in three different disciplines. These included speed, in which competitors race to the top of the wall; lead, where the goal is to climb as high as possible on belay within the time limit; and bouldering, in which climbers would attempt to complete as many 'problems' as possible on a very challenging wall in the fewest attempts.

While some viewers were simply satisfied with the variety that sport climbing brought to the Olympics, many took issue with the format of the competition as the disciplines are vastly different from one another. Speed requires climbers to be as quick and agile as possible, lead is all about controlled and calculated movements over long periods of time, and attempts in bouldering are far more intense due to the exceedingly challenging moves. The training is different, the mentality is different, and the ideal physiques are different. Everything is different.

Paris have tried to accommodate these criticisms by dividing the sport into two events, with speed being separated as it is by far the most different of the three. While this is a definite improvement on the format, it still feels as though bouldering and lead should be divided, too. Bouldering features far more focus on explosive power, as climbers are allowed multiple attempts within 4 minutes, whereas lead is all about the endurance of the athletes across a sustained 6-minute climb.  

The changes will see the number of sport climbing gold medals awarded rise from two to four. Sport climbing is likely seen as a demonstrative sport in the eyes of the International Olympic Committee, which is presumably part of the reason bouldering and lead have still not been split up, as they will not want to award the sport so many medals. Separating speed is definitely a step in the right direction, but hopefully, there will still be some significant backlash at this new format, and 2028 can see the three categories rightfully regarded as their own events.