BC Climbers Shine at World Championships in Spain
MEDIA RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – September 15 , 2014
Gijon, Spain – The Sport Climbing Association of British Columbia (SCBC) is pleased to announce that a number of British Columbia based climbers are returning from the 2014 International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC) World Championships in Gijon, Spain with a number of accolades and some hardware.
First and foremost, SCBC member Sean McColl of North Vancouver, British Columbia has been crowned the 2014 Men’s Overall Climbing World Champion, repeating the title he also won in 2012. In Gijon, McColl competed in both the lead and speed disciplines and out of those athletes competing for the men’s overall title, he ranked 3rd overall in Bouldering, 1st overall in Speed, and 1st overall in Lead, all more than enough to give McColl the overall title.
Nanaimo British Columbia’s Elan Jonas-McRae and Kamloops British Columbia’s Robert Stewart-Patterson, both of whom train at the Boulders Climbing Gym in Central Saanich, also enjoyed success. Jonas-McRae, competing in his first ever Worlds, completed two strong climbs in the lead competition and finished 29th overall, the second best performance ever by a Canadian at the World Championships, the first belonging to the aforementioned McColl.
Combined with McColl’s sixth place performance in lead at Gijon, it also marks the first time ever that Canada has placed two climbers in the top 30 in the lead competition at Worlds.
Stewart-Patterson, the Canadian Men’s record holder in speed, finished 22nd in the speed competition in Gijon and while that did not get him into the final rounds, it was the best ever performance by a Canadian at the World Championships.
In other speed news, world record holder Libor Hroza of the Czech Republic, who also trains at the Boulders, and was in second place after qualifications, finished a disappointing 8th at the Worlds after slipping in his quarter-final run. To add insult to injury, eventual winner Danylo Boldyrev of the Ukraine shattered Hroza’s recent world record with a time of 5.60 seconds in his impressive gold medal run. This marks the first time ever that the world record has been broken three times in three weeks (Hroza twice at World Cup in Arco and Boldyrev at Worlds) and with Hroza’s personal best being sub 5.60, no doubt we may see it broken yet again in the near future.
Finally in the World ParaClimbing Championships, Canada’s first ever entrant, former Victoria resident Dr. Kate Sawford reached the podium, finishing in second place after qualification and then staying there to earn a silver medal in her first competition ever.
Victoria British Columbia’s Kimanda Jarzebiak, an SCBC member and coach at the Boulders , was Team Canada’s official at the event. “Building on the results of the Boulder World Championships, where we had two climbers in semi-finals for the first time, this was definitely the best ever showing for Canada at the World Climbing and Para-Climbing Championships. I am so proud of our athletes, and very excited for the future of competition climbing in Canada.”
Maria Izquierdo, the Chair of Climbing Escalade Canada (CEC) – Canada’s National Sport Organization for Climbing – was also in Gijon and was thrilled with the Canadian Team results. She also participated in several meetings with IFSC officials and members of the Pan American Council. “IFSC is very proud of the steps taken by Canada to get a sports structure in place for climbing in our country. They want to encourage our effort and are glad to present our actions as a model for structuring other federations.”
About Sport Climbing Association of British Columbia (SCBC)
The Sport Climbing Association of British Columbia (SCBC) was established in 2012 to be the Provincial Sport Organization for competition climbing in British Columbia and to foster and promote the growth of competition climbing throughout the Province. Learn more at www.sportclimbingbc.ca.
Please Visit SCBC at:
Web: http://www.sportclimbingbc.ca
Twitter: @SportClimbingBC Hashtag: #scbc14
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sport-Climbing-BC/485203698204762
About Climbing Escalade Canada
Climbing Escalade Canada is the National Sport Organization (NSO) for competition Climbing in Canada. The CEC mission is to regulate and promote the development of competition climbing in Canada, and provide assistance to athletes, coaches, and event organizers at the national level. Learn more at www.climbingcanada.ca or www.escaladecanada.ca.
Please Visit CEC at:
Web: http://www. http://climbingcanada.ca or en Français http://www. escaladecanada.ca
Twitter: @ClimbingCanada
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/CEC-Climbing-Escalade-Canada/174699306067168
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MEDIA CONTACT:
Mr. Christian J. Stewart
Phone: 250-744-7277
E-Mail: cstewart@cjscons.com
