Rope climbing
Encyclopedia
World Police and Fire Games
ThisWorld Police and Fire Games are a biennial athletic event open to active and retired law enforcement and fire service personnel throughout the world...
, and is enjoying a resurgence in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, where competitions are held in shopping centres. Also, enthusiasts in the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
resurrected the sport in 1993, and hold local and national competitions.
History and description of the event
This was an Olympic Gymnastic event at one time, but was removed from that venue after the 1932 Games. In the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, competitive climbing on both 20 ft and 25 ft, 1.5 inches (38.1 mm) natural fibre ropes was sanctioned by both the AAU
Amateur Athletic Union
The Amateur Athletic Union is one of the largest non-profit volunteer sports organizations in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs.-History:The AAU was founded in 1888 to...
and the NCAA until the early 1960s, when these organizations dropped the events. As a result, intercollegiate competition in the USA disappeared at this time. In Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
held in the USA, competitors climbed a 25 ft (7.62m) rope, but when post-1896 Games were held in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, an 8m (26.3 ft) rope was used. In almost all contests, athletes climbed for speed, starting from a seated position on the floor and using only the hands and arms. Kicking the legs in a kind of "stride" was normally permitted. However, at the 1896 Olympic Games
Gymnastics at the 1896 Summer Olympics - Men's rope climbing
The men's rope climbing was one of eight gymnastics events on the Gymnastics at the 1896 Summer Olympics programme. The final event in the gymnastics competition, rope climbing was held on 10 April. The rope was 14 metres long, suspended from a frame...
, competitors were ranked by both time and style (holding an L-position) on a rope so long (15 metres) that some climbers did not reach the top and were therefore excluded. In all succeeding Olympics through the 1932 Games, competitors were judged strictly by time of ascent on a shorter rope.
At the top of the climb, there was a circular "tambourine" with lampblack on its undersurface, which the climber touched. Several timers with stop watches timed the climb, and an acceptable official time was then agreed upon. Before the event expired in America, an electronic means of timing the climb was developed, but this was insufficient reason to continue an activity conducted at gymnastic meets that many artistic gymnasts thought should have been relegated to the track & field arena. The world record for the 20' climb was 2.8 seconds, first achieved by the American Don Perry in the 1950s.
The modern version of the sport incorporates an electronic timing device.