Yesterday, for the first time in history, two female British climbers were in an IFSC World Championship final. How did Shauna Coxsey and Michaela Tracy get on? Rachel Hoyland reports.
The season has been intense, even grueling, with eight World Cup competitions in quick succession. It has also been glorious, says Rachel, who was at the World Championships with Shauna and Michaela yesterday to witness the grand finale.
This summer has made Shauna the most successful competition climber in British history. Over the ‘Summer of Shauna’, Britain went from hopeful to jubilant as she clasped a long-anticipated gold medal in Grindelwald, then rapidly consolidated it with a second, just a week later in Innsbruck. In her spare time Shauna also became one of only three women in the world to climb an 8b+ boulder problem.
After a summer like that Shauna was either going to be beaten to pieces or in fantastic shape. Checking in with athlete and coach before the World Championship final, it was evident that the latter was the case. Refreshed from a few weeks rest, all be it carrying a slight shoulder injury, Shauna was psyched and ready to try her hardest in Munich.
The 1972 Olympic Stadium in Munich is an incredible venue. Although the Olympic track is no longer in place (much to the disappointment of Coach Glennie) the giant wave of the stadium roof creates a skyline both serene and impressive. The flags of the competing nations flutter beneath its sheltering arches. A big wheel, a fairground a lake and a park fringe the arena and the whole scene is one of colour, gaiety and eager anticipation.
Qualifiers on Friday went well with Shauna finishing a comfortable third in her group while Michaela Tracy exceeded all expectations (her own included) by qualifying first in the group. Charlotte Garden also put in a strong performance in her first senior GB outing, flashing the first problem in her group and showing excellent form on the other four.
On Saturday, semi-finals kicked off with a sweep of coloured volumes adorning the walls and a massively buzzing crowd. Problem one for the women involved steep and slopey compression and was swiftly dispatched, on their second attempts, by both Shauna and Michaela. Problem number two was a tenuous vertical affair but, again, both Shauna and Michaela made the top.
Problem number three, a ferocious combination of crimps and barn-door moves, evaded the girls, but they were back on top on number four, gaining the finishing hold through an impressive demonstration of flexibility and creativity with Shauna yelling encouragement to Michaela every shuffle and foot bump of the way.
By the time finals came around the arena was jammed and the crowd and the athletes were having a fantastic time. Although there was generous support for athletes of all nations, the crowd really showed their passion whenever German home heroes Jule Wurm and Jan Hojer came to the stage.
Finals for the women were tough. Out of six women and four boulder problems (possible 24 tops) only eight tops were achieved. Shauna claimed one of these tops on problem number four, and came frustrating close on the other three problems, looking always composed and in control but never quite fully mastering the difficult sequences.
Nevertheless, Shauna is a competitor who is never without a smile on her face and who never lacks enormous generosity of spirit when it comes to appreciating the success of others. Even before the competition she mused on the prospect of Jule Wurm taking the gold medal before her home crowd.
It was a prospect that Jule converted to reality with an impressively strong and focused performance. Every heart in the crowd was with her and Jan as they shared an elated and emotional embrace on stage.
Although the night ultimately belonged to the Germans, yesterday was a proud day for Britain and the first time in history that two female British climbers have been in the final of an IFSC competition. Shauna finished finally in fourth place and closed her 2014 IFSC competition season with a hugely-impressive World Number Two ranking.
Michaela Tracy came to the event after three months of campus and power-training without expectations, but with an intention to make an impact. She certainly achieved that. Clearly loving every minute of the climbing and giving her all in determination and creativity, Michaela was a blast of energy and enthusiasm and totally wowed herself and the audience to take that much deserved sixth place.
Of the other GB team members who competed, Charlotte Garden finished 33rd and in the men’s Dave Barrens placed 41st, Nathan Philips 59th, Jon Partridge 66th, Matthew Cousins 75th and Tom Newman 92nd.
Ben Pritchard and Nick Brown were also on location to shoot a short film about Shauna at the World Championships which will be published soon on BMC TV. Watch this space...
READ MORE:
World Championships: watch Shauna live
Shauna Coxsey sets a New Baseline for Britain
Shauna Coxsey: second in the world
Join Shauna Coxsey at this year's Coaching Symposium
Shauna filmed this on her iPhone stuck in a tree, she explained: "I've been reluctant to share the video of my ascent of New Base Line due to the quality of the footage. I went to Magic Wood for a holiday. No film crew, no photographers, just myself and Ned. I wanted to film my ascent of the boulder to send to my coach so we balanced my phone in a tree as I was too scared to attempt the boulder without a spot. Due to the bad weather there was no opportunity to film the climb at a later date. This is my most significant ascent, and I have decided that I want to share my experience. I know this video doesn't show the whole climb but I hope you can appreciate my effort. I have watched this video countless times and I think it's pretty funny..."
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