Demo time for the Climbing World Championships

The FFME – organizer of the Climbing World Championships Paris 2016 – and the French climbing teams met with the media in order to introduce them with the climbing key event of the year. On the menu at the climbing gym MurMur in Issy-les-Moulineaux, on Tuesday, May 10th, were lots of discussion time, demos from the French climbers and a try out for the journalists who wanted to have a taste of it. What is sure is that the 2016 world championships are coming!

“This autumn, you will have the opportunity to watch one of the biggest climbing competitions ever organized!” This is what Pierre You, the FFME’s president, made sure to remind the journalists who came to the MurMur climbing gym in Issy-les-Moulineaux in addition to the key announcement expected by the entire climbing family: the decision that the IOC will make this summer, meaning having sport climbing included or not in the Tokyo 2020 program.

Pierre You – FFME’s president - and Pierre-Henri Paillasson – FFME’s national technical director and general director.

Discussions during a qualitative exchange session: journalists – from the sports and general press – were able to freely discuss with the national technical department’s representatives, the staff and the French climbers. Key tips for their preparation, technical specificities related to each discipline, sports ambitions and sport climbing future: “making it possible for the press to easily meet with and talk to the key players of the upcoming Climbing World Championships, that was the objective for this first press event”, explains Marie-Anne Midy, FFME’s communication director.

But not only: it was also climbing time. The best way to present our sport to the press is for sure to have our best climbers from the French teams make special demos to the journalists. We witnessed Hélène Janicot going in a lead route quite technical. A speed climbing duel between two climbers from the French speed climbing team Anouck Jaubert and Aurélia Sarisson. And Lucie Jarrige, from the French paraclimbing team who went into a route most climbers would not succeed to climb.

And we also saw some unusual moves, including the speed climber Bassa Mawem warming up in a lead route! 

Then it was time for the dozens journalists on site to try and feel their first climbing holds of the gym. A very special climbing initiation coached by the French team climbers themselves, under the supervision of the national coaches. “For us, it’s rare to have that many elite climbers in our gym”, realized François Le Lijours, the MurMur manager at Issy-les-Moulineaux, the official partner of this FFME’s initiation. “And it’s always a pleasure to be able to have people trying out climbing for the first time!”

FFME official partner for the demo