Adam Ondra exclusive: Why sport climbing is unique and special, and why Norway's Silence was my biggest achievement
In a special fan question and answer segment, the Czech sport climber shared his thoughts on the camaraderie in climbing, his biggest achievement as an athlete, and what he would change if he got to set a route for the Olympic Games.
Sport Climbing
There is a saying in sport climbing that climbers don't climb against each other, they climb against the wall.
It is a mantra that many pro climbers carry with them, including Czechia's Adam Ondra, who took part in a special Fan Q&A at the Olympic Qualifier Series in Budapest on Wednesday (19 June).
Speaking exclusively during the event hosted by Olympics.com, Ondra said: "I think climbing is really unique that it's quite natural and even tactical to not compete against your rivals, who are at the same time your friends, but to compete against the route.
"It's less stressful at the same time and it's also the root of our sport. Climbing is one of those rare sports where you can say climbing is really for everyone.
"It's really easy to chit-chat with everyone. Even in the isolation zone (before competition) with our rivals, we're just chit-chatting about the route.
"One hour beforehand we have a warm-up wall if it's a Boulder session, and we warm up together. We're used to training alone and we never really have 20 motivated guys climbing together. It's tempting to have a training session but you have to remember it's a competition!"
Asked if taking fan questions was something new to him, Ondra said he felt being a sport climbing athlete actually allows him to stay in touch with his fans.
"Unlike many other sports we train in the same facilities as other climbers, so I think pro climbers feel relatively close to our climbing fans," he explained.
What is Adam Ondra's biggest achievement?
Asked by a fan what he would consider his biggest achievement in his climbing career, the 31-year-old said it was his 2017 ascent of the 9c-graded world's hardest route, Silence, in Norway – the first human to scale it.
"It's why at heart I'm a rock climber," he had explained earlier in the chat. "From time to time I'm really motivated to compete (in sport climbing competitions), but if I had to choose only one it would be rock climbing because I feel something more.
"It has a spirit which is really incredible. For most of my climbing career, I was really pushing my limits for climbing and in my life I think I've put more attention on rock climbing."
Could competition sport climbing ever hold a similar place in his heart? "Maybe if I get good results at the Olympics, they'll become equal," he laughed.
Speaking of the Olympic Games, the question was put to Ondra: if he could be the route setter for any of the Lead walls or Boulder puzzles, what would he do?
"The Lead wall would definitely be much more vertical!
"The biggest challenge for me is maybe the style. Both Lead and Bouldering have a specific style and there are certain elements that maybe I'm not so good in," Ondra added.
Adam Ondra's diet and preparation for Olympic Games
Ondra is in Budapest, Hungary for the second and last stage of OQS, which will determine some of the final Paris 2024 qualifying quota spots.
The Czech athlete put himself in good position with a third-place finish in the men's combined Boulder & Lead event at the first stage last month in Shanghai, the People's Republic of China which he admitted was a relief.
"I'm actually really looking forward to competing," he said. "The first event in Shanghai was very different, a lot of pressure, but since I did quite well I feel less pressure. I can take advantage and use this to prepare for Paris.
"Competing in Tokyo [in 2021] was definitely incredible but maybe the whole Olympic experience wasn't the same if there wasn't Covid. I'm hoping I can do a bit better in Paris than I did in Tokyo."
How will he fuel up for the task?
"I have quite a strict diet," he replied. "My diet is mostly based on natural food. I cook a lot but I don't cook according to recipes. A lot of vegetables, nuts, of course a lot of protein."