Olympic speedclimber Sarah Tetzlaff Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly
Ever imagined an Olympic event that takes less time than the 100 metre sprint?
The answer is speed climbing and two young Kiwis have taken to it with a passion.
Sarah Tetzlaff, 24, and 19-year-old Julian David won the men's and women's titles at the IFSC sport climbing oceania qualifier in Melbourne last November.
They beat the Australians and climbed the 15 metre face in just 8.54 and 6.77 seconds respectively.
Sarah Tetzlaff, right, competes in the speed final of the Oceania qualifying event in Melbourne. Photo: photosport
Two weeks out from the Olympics, Tetzlaff broke the Oceania record at a competition in southern France, scaling the wall in 8.4sec.
"It was awesome to see the hard work in action as I got that time," Tetzlaff says on the New Zealand Olympic website.
"I actually broke the record twice that day so it's a nice little confidence boost to do that right before the Olympics."
Background:
Born: 18 April 2000
Grew up in Wellington, now based in Tauranga
Studying for a masters in environmental science
Interests: mountain biking, canyoning, skiing, surfing, camping, and rock climbing
Event: women's speed climbing
Achievements
- Won: National title several times, set multiple records
- Competed at: World Cup events and Youth Olympics
- Won the IFSC sport climbing oceania qualifier to ensure NZ Olympic spot
Speed climbing made its Olympic debut at the Tokyo Games as one of three disciplines in the sport climbing event, the other two being bouldering and lead-climbing.
For Paris however, the International Olympic Committee decided to make speed climbing a standalone event.
Soon after finding out about the changes, coach Rob Moore set up a high-performance programme in Mount Maunganui, using an outdoor wall built near the Bay Oval.
A year later, David won the first-ever youth worlds medal for New Zealand at the IFSC climbing youth world championships in Seoul in August.
As a result, Moore received requests from around the world wanting the secrets to his coaching success and David won the emerging talent award at the 2023 Halberg Awards.
Sarah Tetzlaff and Julian David Photo: IFSC / Supplied
Both athletes are excited about being in the small field chasing the medals in Paris.
Tetzlaff says the Olympic wall looks "amazing".
"It's such a privilege to be one of only 28 speed climbers total that will race on that wall - that'll be a special thing for me."
She will be in action from 5 August.