Mickael MAWEM

France-born Mickaël Mawem is one half of a brotherly duo with big dreams in sport climbing – and who will be anxious to bounce back on home soil at Paris 2024 after missing out on medals in Tokyo.

Mawem finished 7th at the 2019 Combined World Championships and helped further his preparations for Tokyo by claiming the bouldering title at the European Championships in the same year. But he could only finish 5th at Tokyo 2020, with speed climbing - as for so many of the more traditional climbers - proving his downfall. The split between speed and lead/bouldering should work in his favour in Paris.

The 2018 French champion discovered climbing at the age of 12 thanks to his brother Bassa, the Olympic speed climbing record holder. Mickaël Mawem is highly regarded for his technical ability, and though he doesn’t specialise in speed, he still holds a personal best of 6.250 seconds – and in May 2021 achieved his best-ever finish in a Speed World Cup, ranking 11th.

The Frenchman expects the best of himself every time he competes and his determination to qualify for the Olympics remained unwavering. He put his successful qualification down to having the ‘right mentality’ that, along with talent, secured him a place in one of the biggest competitions in the world.