[Muenchener]

The semis are difficult, but having accurate real time scores up should be simple enough and would make things loads easier to follow, sadly it doesn't seem to be that easy judging from the last two comps...

Quite. As a climber I find competition bouldering great to watch, but if the IFSC can't get its act together to the minimal degree of being able to display up to date scores and rankings on the live feed, then they have no chance of ever being anything other than a tiny niche sport watched by people who are already enthusiasts.

IFSC rules are actually possible to comprehend, unlike the ABS Nationals. So how hard can it be?

[Clart]

Ha, that's an awesome pic of Shauna and Ondra 

Ondra seems on intermittent form at the moment, making daft mistakes and not reading problems well. Hope he manages to sort it out as he's looking slick when he sorts it out.

I'd also love to see a replay of the Dmitry machine doing M4

[Pako]

Hopefully OnBouldering or Udini will have the footage.

[Whyatt]

Nathaniel Coleman said that he would definitely compete at the World Championships in Munich, and is considering buying tickets for Asia. The guy doesn't have any sponsorships yet, hopefully that will change soon.

I hope so he has a good style strong!

[Durbs]

Internet connection issues aside - good comp overall I thought.

Enjoyed AJ's co-commentary - interesting take on Pooch's injury, whether it was appropriate or not, thought it was worth putting out there.
Less Shouty One was better - still got some basics wrong about the climbing, but was all over any technical AV discussion...

Would've liked to see more of the GoPro shots as they bothered to put them in - but things seemed quite rushed.

Just a shame so many key moments were missed due to the data drop-out (even on the non-live videos) - not IFSC's fault, but still.

Pooch and Anna out, and Jule not qualifying - Shauna's disappointing first round might not be so much of an issue.

Rule question - on F4 where there was such a massive rest point, are there any rules to say how long you can sit there for?

[Nibile]

Which injuries did Anna and GGM suffer?
Alex Johnson's commentary respect Pooch's injury was a bit lame indeed. When you can't say anything good, it's best to say nothing at all.

[Pako]

From GuiGui's fb - 'Broken something in my finger in the first problem of the semi and so I was not able to try hard... That mean I will not compete at the next stages of the world cups...'
The commentators said that Anna got an unspecified finger injury as well. This wc series will likely be one of new names.

[T_B]

Alex Johnson's commentary respect Pooch's injury was a bit lame indeed. When you can't say anything good, it's best to say nothing at all.

I've thought about this and disagree. The question is - what was her motivation to speak out? Sour grapes? Or does she see this issue as being increasingly widespread? I always get the impression that AJ is involved in youth coaching, and she comes across as very 'maternal'. Perhaps she's genuinely worried about the message being sent to young climbers by hardcore weight loss? So, whilst her comments were a bit fumbling and perhaps not well thought out (are we talking about simple malnutrition, or anorexia/bulimia?), personally I think she was brave to publicly say something about Pooch's current physical state. I've heard a few second-hand stories in relation to what some of the top comp climbers eat (or don't), with these 16 and 17 year olds now getting into finals and winning, we don't exactly want to cultivate a culture where malnourishment is seen as the norm.

[Nibile]

I had thought about that also, and I understand what you mean.
Simply, one could avoid the name and shame attitude and maybe let at least some time pass by before addressing the issue. This all seemed a very sudden hit. No classy at all.
Bear in mind, I have a terrible opinion on what Pooch's been doing to herself as of late.

[Doug]

247.TV tweeted yesterday "#ifscwc Just spoke to Anna at Denver Airport and she popped her hand trying to reach the pink hold on F2. She won't do China so Munich next!"

I presume they mean the pink hold on the blue volume that she was dynoing for. Unfortunately the replay doesn't show her sending the problem.

Hopefully Munich will be a thrilling finale with Anna and Megan back in the mix and without the stamina sapping altitude.

[GraemeA]

I spoke with Nathaniel yesterday and he is almost certainly going to be in China.

[jwi]

That's great news! Good to see a new kid on the block, especially since senior  US male climbers haven't had much success since Sharma quit competing.

[a dense loner]

Christopher says hi Graeme

[GraemeA]

Which one?

[GraemeA]

Unofficially, Anna has done her A4 pulley.

[fatneck]

Really enjoyed the whole set up and aside from her Pooch comments, I thought Alex dealt with the less shouty one pretty well. I think his problem is, he's been commentating on comps for an while and therefore thinks he knows what he's talking about but has no concept of the fact that climbing in a comp is different to just climbing indoors and then that climbing indoors is completely different to climbing outdoors! I thought this when he was going on about Ondra having weak shoulders or some shit - AJ did well to try and put some context in without making him sound like a tit...

Agree with whoever it was that said they could do with sorting the scoring out.

Also, it's great to have Graeme on here... 

[Lund]

Why is commenting on Pooch's weight not fair comment?  We've been talking about climbers' weight for years:

* http://www.grimper.com/news-charlotte-durif-revient-toute-experience-competitrice-debut-circuit-coupe-monde-difficulte-2014
* http://eveningsends.com/climbing/climbers-who-cheat/

For a while, the website 8a.nu took a stand on the issue by supposedly not reporting any ascents done by climbers with a BMI under 17 (a number the site computed using the height and weight the climber himself had entered into his online profile).

I believe the Austrian climbing team has a limit to be on the team of a BMI of 17 too.

So, just restricting ourselves to climbing, and not to anything else - no discussion of body fat percentages and general health, not even bothering to talk about being a role model to young girls, parallels with modelling industry, etc. etc. - the weight of climbers is a valid topic.

Right?

So, given that - why is Puccio's weight - which looks lower than average - NOT a valid topic?

[benno]

I don't think anyone was saying that it isn't a valid topic of discussion. It's just that immediately ascribing her injury to being underweight, without anything to back it up and when it's already a sensitive issue, is a bit crass.

[r-man]

I thought this when he was going on about Ondra having weak shoulders or some shit - AJ did well to try and put some context in without making him sound like a tit...

I don't think he was completely off the mark. Ondra often struggles noticeably on the more board-style problems (eg M4). Clearly, he's not weak by normal standards, but compared to Jan and Dmmitrii those problem don't suit him.

I thought there was a great mix of competitors in male finals, mainly because there were such contrasting superpowers on display. Ondra - brilliant with heels, super flexible and good reach. Dmmitrii - lock off beast. Jan - bouncing giant and volume crusher. Sean - Mr smooth. Nathaniel - new kid on the block, but looks like he's got serious campus power.

Problems looked great in general, bar M4 which was a bit of a let down. Far too easy for those guys. I'm sure it's much harder to find the line between impossible and too easy on basic stuff, where sequence finding and foot slips don't help separate the climbers.

[Pako]

Maybe the whole underweight factor may have had a hand to play in Pooch's injury - but no one knows and it was a bit cockish to bring it up on the live stream the day the injury happened. Bit too soon.

[petejh]

I'm assuming the people commenting on the issue of Puccio's weight are aware of the podcast interview in which she discusses in some detail her recent weight loss:

    Exactly how she trains on a weekly basis
    Exactly how Justen Sjong is helping her improve her mental game
    Why she doesn’t have enough sponsor money, and what she’s doing about it
    How she lost weight, and whether or not she’s anorexic
    What she thinks about performance enhancing drugs
    Lots more – she’s very honest and open

https://www.trainingbeta.com/media/tbp-021-alex-puccio/?portfolioID=3838

[iwasmexican]

Nathaniel - new kid on the block, but looks like he's got serious campus power.

How can you say that when he match at his wrist on the second pocket....

[r-man]

 

Because this final move proved too big for some people to do with a foot on...



Jan also mentioned in the interview that him and Nathaniel were probably the strongest of the finalists at that type of climbing.

[Lund]

I'm assuming the people commenting on the issue of Puccio's weight are aware of the podcast interview in which she discusses in some detail her recent weight loss:

    Exactly how she trains on a weekly basis
    Exactly how Justen Sjong is helping her improve her mental game
    Why she doesn’t have enough sponsor money, and what she’s doing about it
    How she lost weight, and whether or not she’s anorexic
    What she thinks about performance enhancing drugs
    Lots more – she’s very honest and open

https://www.trainingbeta.com/media/tbp-021-alex-puccio/?portfolioID=3838

I started to listen to it.  I had to stop because I DON'T WANT TO BUY YOUR FUCKING CHALK PRODUCT THAT YOU'RE BANGING ON ABOUT FOR FUCKS SAKE.

But, in order to be civic minded, I listened to it more, just for you.

Minute 55 in the epic tale, that's where it's at.  Approximately.

* 12% body fat
* BMI is in the middle

At about 58 minutes, to be fair the interviewer asks a key question - have your periods stopped.  She says "yes"-ish.  But puts this down to contraception, not weight loss, which is actually a reasonable answer.  Later she says she's aiming to get down a bit to 116lbs or so - a bit less than she is now.

This would put her BMI at about 20.  BUPA says this is OK.  Swimming world says it's underweight.  Neither is under the limit of 17, so that puts that to bed.

[Danny]

I thought this when he was going on about Ondra having weak shoulders or some shit - AJ did well to try and put some context in without making him sound like a tit...

I don't think he was completely off the mark. Ondra often struggles noticeably on the more board-style problems (eg M4). Clearly, he's not weak by normal standards, but compared to Jan and Dmmitrii those problem don't suit him.

I thought there was a great mix of competitors in male finals, mainly because there were such contrasting superpowers on display. Ondra - brilliant with heels, super flexible and good reach. Dmmitrii - lock off beast. Jan - bouncing giant and volume crusher. Sean - Mr smooth. Nathaniel - new kid on the block, but looks like he's got serious campus power.

Problems looked great in general, bar M4 which was a bit of a let down. Far too easy for those guys. I'm sure it's much harder to find the line between impossible and too easy on basic stuff, where sequence finding and foot slips don't help separate the climbers.

I thought he was miles off, since Jan also struggled on the same move of the same problem weak shoulders likely wasn't the reason for failure. More to the point, I can forgive Less Shouty One's lack of nuanced climbing insight, but he should be competent enough to keep us up to date with the scores, and to remember whether such and such had just flashed something, or did it 2nd go. He seems to fail quite a bit with this stuff.