The road to American sport climbing at the Paris Olympics was paved through Boulder.
Three of the four Americans headed to Paris for lead and bouldering — Colin Duffy, Brooke Raboutou and Natalia Grossman — spent their youth at ABC Kids Climbing in Boulder. There, the trio padded the city’s reputation as one of America’s premier climbing hotspots. And soon they could further reinforce it by bringing home gold.
“Colorado certainly was for a while, and still is in a lot of aspects, the mecca of climbing in the U.S.,” Duffy said. “Boulder was such a notable part of the early days of climbing, and some of the first climbing gyms in the U.S. were there and they used to hold the national championships there in the early 2000s.
“To see the talent that Boulder has produced is really special, and I’m really proud to be a Coloradan and part of the latest chapter.”
Duffy, 20, was the youngest U.S. climber at the Tokyo Games in 2021 when the sport made its Olympic debut. He finished seventh there, while Raboutou placed fifth. Grossman didn’t qualify for Tokyo but earned her spot in Paris by beating out fellow 23-year-old Raboutou for the gold medal at last fall’s Pan American Games while finishing the year ranked No. 1 in bouldering.
Both Duffy and Raboutou also claimed gold in the time since Tokyo, with the former earning first in bouldering and lead climbing at the 2022 IFSC Climbing World Cup. Meanwhile, Raboutou won bouldering gold at the 2023 IFSC Climbing World Cup.
All three competed for Team ABC Boulder under Brooke’s parents, Robyn Erbesfield-Raboutou and Didier Raboutou, who were accomplished climbers on the International Competition Circuit. On Team ABC Boulder, the rising stars developed a friendship and, in the case of Raboutou and Grossman, planted the seeds for a budding professional rivalry.
Brooke Raboutou of the U.S. in competes during the women’s boulder and lead qualification on June 21, 2024, in Budapest, Hungary. (Photo by David Balogh/Getty Images)
“They came to practice three, four days a week all with the same goals,” Erbesfield-Raboutou said. “They continued to improve on the youth circuit and then as they became older, like 16, they went onto the adult circuit, the World Cup Circuit. They were able to grow in the sport together. So even now, when they find themselves in competition together, there’s a lot of roots and childhood memories between them.”
The trio’s accomplishments over the last few years have built on the greatness of Boulder climbing legends before them.
Notable local men such as Daniel Woods (an eight-time American Bouldering Series champion), Shawn Raboutou (Brooke’s older brother, who was the first to climb two different V17 boulder problems) and Paul Robinson (a pioneer in establishing bouldering problems), as well as renowned women like Lynn Hill and Bobbi Bensman, set the stage for Boulder’s latest talent.
“It’s said you stand on the shoulders of those before you,” Hill said. “Somebody had to go out and pave the way, and …read more
Source:: The Denver Post – Sports
