“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.”
Maya Angelou
On May 20, USA Climbing notified me that the 2020 Youth Sport and Speed Climbing Nationals were cancelled. While not unexpected given the severity of COVID-19 in the US, I am still very disappointed. I trained so hard over the last year and worked at improving my strength like never before.
This year I pushed myself harder than any other year I have trained for climbing. I did over 25,000 pullups averaging 100 daily except for rest days, ran hundreds of miles, completed hundreds of speed climbing runs, drove thousands of miles to Houston and Dallas to access a 15-meter speed wall, and spent over 500 hours in the gym gaining strength. I refined my speed beta numerous times making major changes like upgrading my start to the Reza and doing the One-Handed Dyno on the big jump.
This has been the only year where I have trained as soon as Nationals ended. The other years I competed at Nationals, I took at least two weeks off after the event and around a month off of the speed wall to rest from the previous season. Since I qualified for the Youth Pan American competition last fall, I wanted to start training as soon as I returned from Philadelphia after placing 5th at Youth Nationals last year.
I am in the best shape I had ever been for speed climbing and had just come off of a strong finish at Pan Ams in December. I was mentally prepared to take on this year’s Nationals and was very confident in my ability to repeat my success again. My beta was nearly perfected and my consistency on the wall was at an unprecedented level. Never had I been so prepared for a competition. And I was looking forward to competing for Team Texas and making my coaches proud. Plus, I was excited to attend the elite pre-nationals training camp at Stone Summit in Kennesaw, GA where most of the elite youth speed climbers go to train prior to Nationals.
The news of Youth Climbing Nationals being cancelled is devastating. I feel like I had a chance to compete well again. Despite the cancellation, I will continue to work hard to do my best next year and potentially qualify for the IFSC Youth Worlds in Russia. If I work hard this year, the chances of placing well at 2021 Nationals will only go up.
Despite my disappointment, I agree with USA Climbing that Nationals had to be cancelled. It just isn’t safe for the athletes, organizers, and spectators to all be in close quarters in a climbing gym. Moveover, there is tremendous suffering in the US and the world due to COVID-19. We all have to do our part to try to halt the progress of the virus. I’m very thankful that my family, friends, Team Texas teammates, and myself are safe and healthy. The 2020 climbing Nationals pales in comparison to the enormity of the health and economic crisis. I’m hopeful that the 2021 climbing Nationals will take place. That will mean that a vaccine has been found and life can return to normal. I am ready to return to normal and the speed wall.