Sport climbers begin the hunt for the remaining three...

Sport climbers begin the hunt for the remaining three Olympic quotas.

The eight Slovenian sport climbers will face the first part of the Olympic qualifications in Shanghai between May 16 and 19, 2024, where they will start the hunt for the remaining three Olympic quotas and continue it at the end of June in Budapest. The Slovenian sport climbing team is well prepared and believes that Olympic champion Janja Garnbret will not travel to Paris alone in August.

Slovenia has four Olympic quotas available in sport climbing, and the ticket to Paris has already been secured by Janja Garnbret with her victory at last year's world championship. For the remaining three, eight members of the Slovenian sport climbing team will compete in the Olympic qualification tournament from May 16 to 19 in Shanghai, China, and from June 20 to 23 in Budapest, Hungary. The hunt for another women's quota in the land of dragons begins with Vita Lukan, Mia Krampl, Sara Čopar and Lucija Tarkuš, who replaced Lučka Rakovec as a reserve, while for the two men's quotas, Luka Potočar, Anže Peharc, Martin Bergant and Zan Lovenjak Sudar will compete.



"We really had some problems with injuries, but that's behind us and I expect everyone to perform well, which is necessary in both bouldering and lead. We believe we have real chances to get another Olympian besides Janja. After all, that's why we're here, that's what we'll fight for. The competition is very large, many countries have the same goal, but we are focused on our performances and our desires. Now we will give everything at this competition and try to go to the second competition with the best possible feeling, and we expect that Janja will not be alone in Paris," is convinced the selector of the Slovenian sport climbing team Gorazd Hren, who is accompanied in China by coaches Luka Fonda and Domen Švab and physiotherapist Sašo Oštir.

The qualification tournament will feature 48 female sport climbers and 48 male sport climbers. Bouldering qualifications for both girls and boys in Shanghai start on Thursday, May 16, at 4:30 Central European Time, the next day, May 17, lead qualifications are scheduled at 4:00. Climbers in each round of the competition will face one route in lead and four bouldering problems, which have a special scoring method. The top twenty will advance to the semi-finals, which will be on Saturday, May 18, bouldering part at 3:30 and lead at 7:30. The top eight on Sunday, May 19, will face the finals, first the men with bouldering at 4:00 and lead at 6:05, followed by the women's final with bouldering at 9:25 and lead at 11:30. The competition will be broadcast live in its entirety by the Olympic Channel. The results will be a provision for the second part of the Olympic qualifications, which will be at the end of June in Budapest, where ten female and ten male travelers to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games will be known, where Janja Garnbret will defend her Olympic champion title in August.

The Olympic experience from Tokyo 2021 is already held by Mia Krampl (AO PD Kranj), also the 2022 European vice-champion in the combination of lead and bouldering and fourth at the 2024 world championship in lead. "The last trainings before the Olympic qualifications went as they did throughout the preparatory season. I focused more on lead, meaning endurance, with the thought that I have to climb my discipline very well. It's hard for me to assess my form, it seems to me that I am well prepared, we did some good trainings, but we will realistically check the preparedness and form at the competition," said the 23-year-old sport climber from Golnik, who placed 8th in lead and 19th in bouldering at the opening 2024 World Cup competitions in China: "There is definitely more pressure than for a regular World Cup. Of course, every athlete wants to go to the Olympic Games, everyone wants to climb their best at these qualifications, especially because there is only one more ticket for Slovenia and I know that all the girls are really strong and well prepared. Maybe that's why the pressure is even greater, but I'm trying to calm down a bit more in the last days and focus on climbing, then we'll add up the points and look at the results."

The second Slovenian women's hot iron in the Olympic fire will be Vita Lukan (ŠPO PD Radovljica), who successfully returned to major competitions last year after a knee injury and achieved her premier victory in the World Cup in lead, she was also third at the World Cup competition in Koper and in the season's overall lead ranking. "We started preparations already in mid-November, classically with strength exercises, gradually adding bouldering and lead, we also had a lot of national trainings, a lot of set boulders, so the plan was well laid out. I would like to have shown better form earlier, but due to slightly poorer preparedness, I decided to skip the first two World Cup competitions in China and really focus only on preparations for the Olympic qualifications. I succeeded well in that, I feel much better, I think I am prepared, especially in lead I have big ambitions. For bouldering I will need a bit more luck, but I can climb them quite well too," realizes the 23-year-old from Radovljica, who wants to capitalize on the experience from last year's European OI qualifications in Laval: "Last year before Laval I got a bit burned because I imposed too much pressure on myself, which I couldn't withstand at the competition. So now it's enough for me to know that I am well prepared and that I just have to climb at the competition, I don't impose heavy pressure on myself, because that brings absolutely nothing good. There will be 48 of us at this competition, only 10 will get the ticket, so I will try my best."

With a knee ligament injury, Sara Čopar (ŠPO PD Celje Matica) entered this season, who last year at the home competition in Koper first placed among the top ten in the World Cup among senior women. The nineteen-year-old from Laško is confidently returning to competitions after recovery: "The season didn't start according to plans, but I had two months to do everything I could to heal my injury as quickly and as well as possible. I trained according to an adapted program and strengthened mainly the upper body, basically became stronger, which was my deficiency before, so now I am more confident in that area and I'm going to Shanghai very positive. Before and during the competition, the atmosphere will definitely be tense, because we will all fight for the Olympic ticket and we all go there with the same goal, to win it, but from experience I know that if I am nervous, I don't climb well, so I will try to be as relaxed as possible and climb as I know how."

Lučka Rakovec also qualified for the Olympic qualifications, but due to her health condition decided to postpone her return to competitions, so the 20-year-old Lucija Tarkuš (AK Impol Slovenska Bistrica) jumped in as the first reserve: "The preparations went similar to every season, without specialties, because for a very long time I didn't know that I would be able to participate in the Olympic qualification competitions at all. At this, I would like to wish Lučka a speedy recovery and that her health serves her. If I had known earlier that I could participate in this competition, I would have started working on my endurance earlier and training lead, I would also have participated in the first two World Cup competitions in China, which I skipped. I don't feel special pressure, but I see this competition more as an opportunity that I want to use as best as possible and show my best climbing. I think I trained well and I'm very looking forward to the competition."

The most successful Slovenian sport climber of recent years Luka Potočar (ŠPO PD Radovljica), 2021 world and 2022 European vice-champion in lead, started this season with 15th place in his parade discipline and 39th in bouldering at the opening 2024 World Cup competitions in China. "This was one of the longer preparatory periods, as it started quite early. There was a bit of everything, lead, bouldering, towards the end of course more lead, which is my primary discipline. The first two competitions in China were also included in that. Otherwise, it's hard to say what the form is, I feel good, of course the competition will tell everything. The competitions a month ago also gave some view, how and what, it seems to me that I could have performed better and the result, especially in lead, could have been better. I'm convinced that now in China it will be better," reflects the 22-year-old from Jesenice and adds: "I am aware of the weight, like everyone else, because these are the last opportunities for the Olympic Games. I will try to think that away, but still be aware and climb with that, because maybe that can also help with a good performance."

Confidently traveled to China Anže Peharc (AO PD Kranj), who returned even stronger after last year's ankle injury and at the first this year's World Cup competition with 9th place in bouldering got confirmation that he is again competitive with the best. "I think this season I really made a step forward with the climbing level and the preparation itself. I did practically everything that could be done, I trained in the gym and in climbing centers, as part of the national team we had more simulations than any season and combining lead with bouldering. I think I could hardly be better prepared than I am now, at the same time I also feel mentally better prepared for the competition itself, so I have progressed in that area too and can go really positive to this competition," emphasizes the 26-year-old from Tržič and adds: "My goal is not to burden myself with the others, with the setting itself, but just to focus on my performance. I believe that if the performance succeeds, as I know it can, the result will come and at the end we can rejoice in very good successes, maybe even the Olympic Games. I know I need a little luck, I know I am prepared, so that's my approach for this competition."

Injuries at the beginning of the season did not spare the remaining male pair who will represent Slovenian colors at the Olympic qualifications. "Due to a minor elbow injury, I am not completely satisfied with the form yet, but it seems to me that I have made good progress in the last month, so I'm looking forward to what this competition will show. But I enter it as relaxed as possible, because I can only gain something on it, I can't lose anything," is convinced the 28-year-old Martin Bergant (PK Škofja Loka). His national team colleague Zan Lovenjak Sudar (PK Scena) from Libeliče is also looking forward to the competition in Shanghai: "The preparations for the Olympic qualifications went super, according to plan, as we outlined with the coach before the season. Due to a minor injury at the first World Cup competition, I preventively skipped that competition and immediately after returning from China I already started training and the trainings went like butter. I am very satisfied with my form, the bouldering form is excellent, I don't know if it has ever been better, in lead I also added something, so I'm looking forward to the competition. I don't feel additional pressure that this is the last ticket for the Olympic Games, I'm going to the competition to climb like any other and see what will be."