In reply to johncoxmysteriously:
> (In reply to Mick Ryan - Editor - UKC)
>
> What a ridiculous decision. I despair. I'd sooner see tiddlywinks in there - much sooner.
>
> As for climbing itself, do we really need to get into bed with synchronised swimming?
>
What's so wrong with having climbing competions ?
It's a physical activity requiring full-body fitness, agility, skill and mental strength. Judging is solely on easily quantifiable performance and not on interpretation, artistic merits and other subjective qualities.
As such it fits into the olympic criteria - "Swifter, Higher, Stronger" - far better than synchronised swimming, rythmic gymnastics, shooting or indeed tiddlywinks
Obviously competion climbing only takes one element of climbing, and does it in a specific controlled environment. But then exactly the same can be said of Skiing, for example. Does my enjoyment of skiing suffer as a result of it's olympic status ?