Lion City | Breaking the Wind: Competitive Rock Climbing

Cai Jingyi, 18, has won the national youth championship in bouldering and speed climbing for three consecutive years, and ranked fourth in the Asian Games speed relay. His 13-year-old brother Cai Jinan won the silver medal in the Asian Youth Rock Climbing Championships. Both brothers started rock climbing at the age of seven.

For the sports they like, the two brothers insist on rock climbing training five days a week in addition to homework and extracurricular activities after school. Cai Jingyi also has to face the dual burden of A-level and Asian Games.

He said: "My parents took me to various classes to learn things when I was young, but when I grew up, I needed to give up some of these activities because I really couldn't do so many things. I chose to play football and rock climbing. Focusing on these two sports can also ensure my learning. I will have a sense of satisfaction because I feel that I really challenge myself."

I am an office worker during the day and a rock climbing athlete on weekends. 28-year-old Chen Siying has been working hard to balance career and hobbies for many years.

She said: "Because I need to make a living, I put work before climbing. But as time went on, I found that I couldn't give up competitive climbing completely, so I started to balance climbing and work. I would arrange my training time according to my work plan. For example, after get off work, I would go to training, go home to sleep, and then continue working the next day. In addition, at the beginning of each year, I would plan the climbing competitions I would participate in this year and move towards my goals."

During the epidemic, a few speed climbing venues were closed one after another, which put Cai Jingyi, who received an invitation to the Asian Games, under tremendous pressure. He revealed: "We can only watch the routes online at home, watch the speed climbing World Cup athletes to learn how to climb the route from them, and exercise at home. Sometimes we will go to Malaysia and use the facilities in Malaysia to practice our speed route. Fortunately, before the Asian Games in September, we finally have speed climbing facilities in Singapore, and we have invited an Indonesian speed coach."

The Singapore Sport Climbing and Mountaineering Federation said that after rock climbing was included in the Olympic events, the association is also committed to cultivating more talents. The biggest challenge at present is the lack of training venues.

Singapore Sport Climbing and Mountaineering Federation general manager Rasip said: "There are more than 20 commercial climbing gyms in Singapore, most of which are for leisure use, so the climbing routes are also designed for leisure use. But the routes for athletes are different because their climbing level is much higher. So of course they need a special and more challenging route to train. We are looking into this and are discussing with the sports community how to develop it further, and hope to get results in the next one or two years. At present, we have three coaches, most of whom are part-time, but they work well with our 30 athletes, and we are exploring the possibility of hiring an international consultant to guide speed climbing."