On the road Bercy: Clémentine Kaiser: major changes that end up worth it!

The bouldering national champion is sharing some tips with us on how she became so much stronger in 2016.

"I joined the official French bouldering training venue in Fontainebleau last September and even though I train most of the time in Marseille (she teaches sports in high school, ed), with coaching advices from Nicolas Januel – the French national bouldering coach – and having access to the specific French team training area and of the coaching team’s tips have helped me a lot”, explained the competitor. “Before I was training with Sebastien Gnecchi (the paraclimbing national coach, ed), we focused a lot on strength, I owe him a lot. Since I started working with Nicolas, we have focused more on technical aspects, on more specific preparation.”

A new training plan that made the difference this year. With a first successful test against the best French climbers in the national championships. “I thought I was in shape to be competitive against the best. But I have to confess this victory was a surprise!” A close-to-perfect competition for the young woman. Clémentine Kaiser managed this first challenge. And she didn't stop there...

Her victory in the national bouldering championships – which took place in Toulouse on September 5th and 6th – qualified the woman for the French bouldering team. Her first international experience mid-April was also a success: she managed to take a ticket for the final and confirmed at the same time her qualification for the Climbing World Championships in Paris in September.

With those key objectives achieved during the first months of the season, Clémentine Kaiser had the opportunity to focus on her climbing sensations. What happened next for the athlete? Three top 15 in the three next steps of the World Cup with an 8th rank in Mumbai (IND). “I don’t have any target results. It's not worth it: it depends too much on the other athletes’ results. I focuse on myself and I try to take as much pleasure as possible!”

One last step for Clémentine and all the bouldering climbers of the international circuit before joining the AccorHotels Arena the 14th of September: the Bouldering World Cup of Munich on August 12th and 13th.