In reply to Sarah Williams:
there was a brief moment some may remember;
barcelona olympics, climbing was an exhibition sport on a huge outdoor wall with a big pastel coloured overhang.
it what must have been a lull between sprinting, swimming and high diving there was quick flash to what may have been the mens climbing finals.
and there, in technicolour glory was wolfgang gullich doing a one finger pull up over the overhang, footage taken from above to show the height, the grunt and the intensity.
gullich, all lycra, chalk, headband and handlebar mustache cemented climbing into the 80s collective memory for about 10 seconds and then was gone.
who gives a shit about punks in the gym when you could have that.
the olympics finished, the image faded, gullich was killed and that was the end of that.
the problem is not with the climbing its with the sponsors. cricket, baseball and motor racing is infinitely more dull - but also infinitely more energy is put into making it interesting.
costumes wont sell it - dazzling locations, papparazzi, italian marketing and spraying cheerleaders with big bottles of champagne will.
