Competition climbing, a quick primer

Climbing turned up at the Olympics and a lot of people who had never thought about competitions suddenly found themselves shouting at a screen, not entirely sure what they were watching. Why does the climber get a few minutes to stand and stare at the wall before touching it. What is that buzzer. Why is one of them sprinting up a wall while another is delicately balancing on a sloper. If the scoring has ever baffled you, this is the quick primer to make it all click.

The three disciplines

Competition climbing splits into three formats, and they reward almost opposite skills. Understanding the three is the key to following any comp.

Bouldering is short, hard problems on a wall a few metres high with mats below, no rope. Climbers get a set time on each problem and try to reach the top, with a marked zone or hold partway up worth partial credit. It rewards power, problem-solving and the ability to read a sequence quickly. It is the discipline most like what you do at your local bouldering gym.

Lead is a single long route, climbed on a rope, that almost nobody is expected to finish. Each climber gets one go and is scored on the highest hold they reach before falling. It rewards endurance and nerve, the ability to keep moving when your forearms are screaming. Our piece on why your forearms blow up, and what to do explains the pump that decides most lead comps.

Speed is the odd one out. Two climbers race up identical routes side by side on the same standardised wall, which never changes. It is pure explosive sprinting, decided in seconds, and it is a genuinely different sport from the other two.

The disciplines reward such different things that being world-class at all three at once is almost unheard of. A boulderer and a speed specialist are barely doing the same activity.

What is going on with the staring

The thing that puzzles new viewers most is the period before a bouldering climber touches the wall. In a comp, climbers usually do not get to watch each other, and they do not get practice goes. They walk out, see the problem for the first time, and have to work out the sequence in their head before they climb. That quiet staring is them reading the boulder, planning where their hands and feet will go.

This is a skill in itself, and it is one you can practise at your own wall. Working out the moves before you pull on is called reading, and our guide to reading a boulder before you pull on covers how the pros do it. In a comp, getting the read wrong can cost you the round before you have even started climbing.

How the scoring works

Scoring has changed over the years and varies between formats, but the principles are simple enough to follow.

• In bouldering, you score for reaching the top and for reaching the zone hold partway up. Fewer attempts is better, so topping first go beats topping on your fifth try. The buzzer or signal marks the end of your time on a problem.
• In lead, your score is simply the highest hold you control before falling or running out of time. Hold a move that the next climber falls on, and you win the round.
• In speed, it is whoever touches the buzzer at the top first. Times are measured to hundredths of a second.

When the overall results combine more than one discipline, the formats are weighted together, which is why a brilliant boulderer can still win overall despite a weaker lead round.

Why comps are worth a watch

Even if you never plan to enter one, watching good climbers compete is a quietly brilliant way to learn. You see how the best in the world read a problem, how they rest mid-route, how they stay calm when it goes wrong. You pick up beta you can steal for your own climbing, and you start to see technique you can copy at your local wall.

There is a culture side too. Comp climbing has its own etiquette, its own legends and its own running arguments about route setting and scoring, much like the wider sport. If you enjoy the history of how climbing got here, the history of the grade is a good companion read.

Fancy having a go

You do not need to be elite to enter a competition. Most gyms run friendly local comps with categories for every level, and they are some of the best fun you can have at a wall. A few pointers if you fancy it:

• Pick a comp with a beginner or social category. The grading is set so everyone gets problems they can do.
• Treat it as a fun session with a scorecard, not a test. The pressure is only what you bring to it.
• Watch how other people read the problems. You will learn loads in a single afternoon.
• Bring a mate. Local comps are far more about the atmosphere than the result.

Competition climbing looks intimidating from the outside and is surprisingly welcoming once you are in it. Whether you watch the World Cup with a proper understanding of the scoring, or rock up to your gym's monthly fun comp, knowing the formats turns a confusing spectacle into something you can actually enjoy. Give a local one a go. Worst case, you have a laugh and learn a few new problems.