Climbing Styles: The Absurdist

[@jacoboblanco1555]

I’m very lucky to get to watch Ai Mori climb at my regular gym in Tokyo some times. I’ve never seen anyone so focused on what they are doing in my life.

[@fenviolin7100]

That must be so cool to train at a gym where you can see the pros train, I'm jealous :D

[@ggman8216]

B-pump?

[@staticoverplastic7456]

which gym is that?

[@patriciaconde]

a little bit off-topic, but I’m starting to go back to climbing after I moved to tokyo during Covid and… do you have any recommendations on places to train? I only know a couple small bouldering gyms

[@flam8094]

@@fenviolin7100 In my climbing gym in France I see on a daily basis a lot of french athletes it's awesome :) (just to name a few: oriane bertone, fanny gibert, mika mawem, jeremy bonder and so on)

[@nicolewong3687]

Her trade off is that she struggles with cordi/big dynamic moves 😢 it’s quite clear in the recent BJC comp last week but considering that she still managed to make finals despite a very strong pool of Japanese climbers competing is still rather impressive

[@stretch8390]

what does the word, 'cordi', mean? Thanks!

[@illegitimate0]

@@stretch8390 coordinated. Like, when in a dyno, having to precisely catch a toe hook while executing it. Very much a thing you see primarily in comp bouldering.

[@kennethduncan4643]

Ooh, I didn't watch, but taking your word on it, I'm probably gonna see if she has any outdoor ascents filmed

[@stretch8390]

@@illegitimate0 appreciate the explanation!

[@yingqichen7580]

Totally agree. She has definitely gotten way better but sometimes the need to find a stable position to move off of can harm you.

[@sophiep7184]

I had the absolute pleasure of watching Ai win gold in Edinburgh, it was incredible. Since she hadn't competed as much as everyone else she didn't have a ranking during the qualis so she was literally the first on the wall, obviously she topped it with ease - it felt like HOURS before someone else got close!!

[@HighGravityDay]

"She uses her height to her adventage" and route setters in bouldering took that personal; now a year later I feel like they're constantly doing her dirty.

[@hypnogri5457]

There was someone just a couple cm bigger than her doing the same boulders and they cleared it ‘easily’

[@HighGravityDay]

@@hypnogri5457 If you're referring to the Olympics... That person "just a few cm" taller(it's 4, that's already a lot) also has longer legs, which makes these kinds of problems easier. That's - statistically speaking - a disadvantage asian gals will face more than european or african gals.

[@hypnogri5457]

@@HighGravityDay “” Ai Mori after finishing 4th the Olympics final: “the fact that I couldn't handle it this time is not because of my height, but my ability that was lacking. I'm disappointed, but I think disappointment makes you even stronger in the future, so I'm alright with this ranking.” “” You might say that she just said this because she is humble and non-conflictual person but I am going to trust her words and the words of many other climbers that said that the routes weren’t unfair to her height specifically. She is a professional and doesn’t need your excuses.

[@HighGravityDay]

​@@hypnogri5457 It's not "my excuses", it's simple physics and statistics(as in data of the real world) that show that these kinds of boulders are - statistically speaking - easier for European people than for Asian people of the same height. But hey, you go on repeating your olympic straw men to a comment that was made before the Olympics *because the Olympics weren't the first time this happened*.

[@jeremytan739]

@@hypnogri5457which other climbers said it wasn’t unfair for her?

[@ONCEINABLUEMOON1993]

She climbs like a Tai Chi master. She doesn’t use a lot of strength but she is so powerful. Every move is very precise and controlled. Her legs can also twist in any direction to optimize her body position. So impressive to watch!

[@az3ssin263]

Not really, she often use hands lock off to cover for her reaches..maybe she did not jump around and pull and push dynamically very hard..but her lock off strength is definitely on another level..even top compared to the pro..this paired with extraordinary endurance,..makes it even more amazing..coz most pro can do what she does at the early phase of climb..but not throughout the whole route..

[@goloher]

She moves just beautifully. Smoothly as a watercolour paintbrush on paper

[@tester2101]

Yeah, her style is so "liquid"! Love it

[@tallbeta1445]

She uses a three finger drag a lot. Even on powerful dynamic moves. If she can get three fingers on a crimp she can hold it.

[@Mindofliz]

I love being short as a climber. Yeah, I can't skip the crux on most climbs but most of the best climbers I've seen in real life have been short af. Excited for Ai!!!

[@mx2000]

“3 of the best climbers watch getting beat by an 18yo” - dude, Chaehyun is actually a little younger than Ai, and Natalia and Mia are 21 and 22, respectively. Not exactly a world apart. And small and light climbers excelling in lead isn’t exactly a new thing either. Kim Jain and Laura Rogora are even shorter.

[@JorisSchweppe]

Ashima Shiraishi adds up to that list. Its a common thing for sure

[@TheDudeness123]

That's exactly what I thought as soon as I heard that.

[@sirporkrib7643]

One of the difference I have noticed is that Ai Mori is not only short, she also has shorter limbs and narrower shoulders proportional to her already short stature. For instance Ashima Shiraishi has an ape index of 4', I'm sure Ai's is nowhere near that. Maybe like Lynn Hill, she also has an ape index of about neutral. Shorter limbs makes big dyno moves much harder for her, however she managed to use it to her advantage in almost all other situations. One of the examples I can think of is in the Morioka combined final, at the move where Natalie fell off: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eqaQpYiwjL9pa6M. Natalie was almost contorted while Ai found a natural body position. You can easily see from this move how different their body proportions are.

[@morninghope1]

Your clip I don't know I think even with her height, if Natalie had the strength or same idea could try the same move as Ai. Natalie appears to be struggling with her strength and can only hang with straight left arm before trying to reach for the next hold with four points of contact before the attempt. Ai on the other hand had the strength to get herself in a straight body position with left arm perpendicular to her body and right toe hook instead heel hook as her two points of contact instead of four. She then chalked her right free hand and then just reach for the next hold.

[@dancer2234]

3:20 Did you seriously cut out the moment of her completing the move that you were focusing on?? I assume the broadcast must have not shown it, but then why talk about how well Ai did it when it's not shown..

[@Grace-fc1tn]

exactlyyy it was disappointing to watch

[@ericmeng2884]

Yeah, he cut the moment of the movement and he says « did you see that ??? » feels like a prank to me

[@horizonleor09]

Yeah wtf lol

[@BoulderingHighlights]

I can't get enough of Ai mori! Great video Marcus!

[@devratnasari]

Good to see you here!

[@ComicsInk]

You're ignoring the biomechanical advantages of being shorter. 2:26 you can see clearly that the longer wingspan of Mia Krampl makes the compression move massively more powerful for her than it is for Rabatou. Places where Mori can straight-arm is not always possible for taller climbers. Crazy she can make the big moves and still be so efficient.

[@TactlessGuy]

He literally points out that Ai being shorter was an advantage in that specific scenario lmao

[@AllegraClimbingPsychologist]

Akiyo Noguchi became her new coach also, who knows what we'll see in the future!

[@rippingthestrings]

In a vlog on tomoa and akiyos channel, she shows her AMAZING stamina and resilience by climbing a pretty decent climb like over 10 times

[@ofkgjsl]

2:57 lol you cut out the most important part

[@cubesandpi]

That’s just IFSC camerawork being garbage as usual, it’s like their live editing team doesn’t even enjoy climbing

[@lukefriede2986]

Lmao "did you see it?" ...no

[@toddgreen6862]

In the Ai vs Natalia comparison, you don't take into account time under tension. Ai got her feet out but had to match on the hold whereas Natalia went straight to the next hold saving time. Is one better than the other? As in everything climbing, it depends. (Same thing in the heel vs toe. It's power vs mobility (as you touched on). You can pull much harder with a heel, but you sacrifice mobility. IMO, it's very doubtful that climbers at this level can't choose between when to use a heel and when to use a toe, so presumably Seo felt that she needed the additional pull from the heel/leg to make the big span. You'll also note that Ai stays locked off and much higher on the holds whereas Seo drops down and has to bound up to the next hold. This isn't a simple "OMG Ai's a genius because she saw that you could put a toe there.")

[@KingRat355]

To make it static means always lesser risk than to dyno same move. The trade off taller climbers have is they never had to develop technique to make static moves, so they often get away with power moves and let foot go, leading to fatigue. I would always take a shorter climbers trade off than a taller bulkier one. Of course Ai will suffer from long dynos. Short climber will always do.

[@wullivieh]

Not sure if that really is a short/tall climber thing. I don't know about comp climbing but just in your regular "normie" climbing gym I see short people do dynamic moves much more often because they often have to where a taller climber might be able to do the same move statically. I think that they are short and incredible at static moves is a big part of the reason I love watching Ai Mori and also Jain Kim, but I don't think it's an inherent trade of small climbers. E.g. if you look at Futaba Ito or Mei Kotake they are of a similar height but not as static.

[@Annchyiho]

Always enjoy watching Ai Chan climbing - after waiting for a long long time :) . Enjoy the videos and thanks for all the analysis - attention to detail!

[@MrTandtrollet]

@3:05 "Did you see that" cuts out the actual move xD

[@Boph_Teifong]

my thoughts exactly, lmao

[@uncleiso]

Right at the end of the video, going back to the foot on the crimp, she uses her hand to help ensure her foot is properly placed on the crimp and maintains that full 3 point contact until she feels comfortable to remove her hand. The subtlety of her climbing is amazing

[@Angus_fO]

As a 186 cm climber with +8in ape index this is kinda fun to watch. I started climbing when i was rougly 165 cm so I've always adapted to a strange style which I still keep now that im so much taller. This means often using my feet above my head on overhang and high hip positions on slab. Even tho the biomecanics of my body vs climbing style probably differs, the sense of absurdity in climbing style is something that amazes alot of my friends, kinda like when Jan Hojer used to pull his insane shit in comps.

[@Lorendrawn]

So much crossover with boxing and combat sports in general. Create the triangle shape for stability before reaching out to "strike" or grab a hold. When your leg gets in the way, watch for if your toe or heel is contacting the surface because hip orientation is paramount to efficient force generation and subsequent motion

[@SilenceHurtsMore]

Well the Oly in Paris did her dirty, made sure she is unable to reach. What a pity but she will come out of it stronger.

[@hypnogri5457]

Many climbers disagree on that assessment as someone of similar height cleared those bolders just fine. Ai also confirmed that it was her own fault

[@hmanjun7260]

i've seen so many short of ai mori, shes nuts

[@personperson2380]

ngl bud the absurdist art comparison is weird to me. It's just a climber climbing. Analyzing the expressions of the other competitors felt like one of those weird "body language expert" videos where they call Obama a cuckold because of how he sits in a chair. Like, they're just watching something like 25 meters overhead, so they look awkward lol. The climb analysis was great, as usual, but the framing for it felt like a college student bullshitting their way through an essay they forgot to study for.

[@ascentionism]

bro just let me find obscure links to weird labels so i can title these videos Climbing Styles: the xxxxxx. Dave Graham isn't actually a wizard either but i think it sounds cool Re: the climbers expressions, it wasn't just me - Matt Groom was laughing at them for looking surprised, and if you watch the full video, when Ai finally comes off, they all look confused in an impressed sort of way

[@giacomocasanova2893]

@@ascentionismi clicked on this video because of the title and you gained a follower. keep doing it man, makes it more interesting

[@pascaljutras178]

When you are a small climber you have to think that way, getting the most of your feet and body position, with a great hips mobility this become magical, it makes all the difference.

[@gordonadams5891]

These principles are universal. I also apply them to my martial arts practice.

[@hallieq]

I know nothing about climbing but this was really interesting!

[@HorribleMuttonChops]

Being creative isn't the same as being an absurdist.

[@ploopyschloopy985]

“Did you see that?” But he skips 5 seconds

[@devratnasari]

I’ve been waiting for this!!!!! Thank you!!!

[@garbles46151]

I appreciate the introduction to Ai Mori but I found the editing in this video to be frustrating. Especially when showing Ai climbing it seemed like parts were cut out for no reason.

[@PretzelBS]

She absolutely has the trade off of being unable to do some dynos

[@mightyPants]

She is basically the Yoda of climbing.

[@undeniablySomeGuy]

fucking wild that someone like this can exist. she flies

[@rowanmonk5652]

3:04 you cut the video so we can’t see what se did

[@elooouan]

fr

[@lukasgrun3008]

I was looking for this.

[@ascentionism]

If you watch the full clip, the part that I cut was when the IFSC cut away to show Brooke, Chaeyhun, etc. There isn't actually a clip of her doing the move

[@elooouan]

@@ascentionism yeah guessed as much, IFSC's angles are so bad

[@ascentionism]

@@elooouan IFSC camerawork stays undefeated

[@bakicci]

3:02 no it cut :c

[@triplea657aaa]

Ai is so short it's really amazing how well she can climb.

[@mrpants7925]

Its a little silly to invoke absurdism in art here... [person] did [thing] which was unexpected, and then [other person] was surprised therefore [person] is in some way an absurdist. Idk chief. With a connection this weak we can call any climber we want an absurdist. Jan Joher the absurdist for the time he used his height. Adam Ondra the absurdist for the time he static'd the dyno. Alex Megos the absurdist for the time he was just too strong....etc

[@ascentionism]

was this comment really worth the effort

[@mrpants7925]

@@ascentionism it took a minute-thirty to write, so yes.

[@tomtookthat]

@@ascentionism I mean his criticism is pretty valid and has actual value... unlike your reply

[@LePetitBat]

I completely agree, seems like he just had the idea of naming it this way and build a whole lyrical story around that without ever wondering if it was actually relevant. I liked the parts that were objective factual climbing analysis but the rest was just bullshit to me

[@wizardinthecave]

The whole thing about triangles was dumb as well, it's not magic if you have your foot out to the side so your centre of gravity is directly underneath your hips then yes you are more stable, most half decent climbers I know do this.

[@Carly3008]

Ai Mori is the literal GOAT of rock climbing.

[@enderlain385]

Read up on her again and it seems she needs more calories and protein to maintain her form from 2019 with more muscles. I think she was more inclined towards dynamic moves then or has the capacity to withstand more punishment from falls in the attempts. Judging from her interviews, she decided that she is not suited to weight training and concentrates in just climbing training.

[@HiShark8]

I think this what dave graham meant by wizardy, doing stuff thats out of ordinary

[@0980s]

Can we talk about how she is able to match on the tiniest holds

[@Dave1507]

tiny hands match tiny holds.

[@morninghope1]

@@Dave1507 She may be small but her hand and fingers seemed big when you see clips contrary to her arms and body.

[@LCRoland]

Ah Snuff Box, this is indeed one of the most absurdal show.

[@jhy8191]

She climbs smarter not harder (although obviously she climbs super hard!).

[@jsarphie1847]

Seeing a clip of snuff box in a climbing video is insane

[@dereinzigwahreRichi]

Those people may all be rock climbers, too, but after the second tome you called this aftificial indoor(?) Sport climbing "rock climbing" I knew this was not by mistake. It's both great sports but they are quite different beasts, I'm doing both. Besides this I'm short, too, and can confirm: if you can't simply reach up to the next grip/clip, then moving your feet, weight, orientation a lot is essential to get further. I also use wall smearing and deadpoint climbing a lot on artificial walls. And what I always tell to friends starting out with climbing who want to improve quickly: you don't climb with your hands and drag your feet after, you climb with your feet! Always look where you can put your feet and then look what you can grip to get them there. Using your legs to stand up instead of dragging you up with your arms all the time doesn't strain you nearly as much!

[@annakhable]

Yes about kim jain she's so cool to watch

[@faudelgrey5047]

Me when I remember they don't stick to the wall and are in fact 100% strenght

[@szpaqus]

aaaand that's why i hate when people complain about the route cos "Ai is short". well, yeah, but most of the time it's an advantage! if height was in any way beneficial we'd see top athletes to be very tall but the truth is that the best, Janja, is 164cm and with men the average is below 180 cm with some exceptions like Adam. But look at Soratu or Mejdi, they are the top of the top yet they are about 172cm! It's a misconception that being tall helps. Ai has shortcomings like every athlete and that is it, routsetting has nothing to do with it.

[@SH-bw9nw]

Was the "Did you see that?" question at 3:03 a joke? I absolutely did not see that. Because the whole move was cut away and not shown at all. Even worse camera work than world cups in general smh

[@mori5509]

I was waiting for this video:D

[@foaly8]

I love her

[@mikethompson7046]

Bro the cut at 3:06 where you say did you see that literally cuts the thing we are supposed to see:/

[@codytsaowimonsiri3307]

Had chills while you were describing Ai's absurd abilities, great vid!

[@tomtookthat]

05:54 "Most climbers see a route as..." This sounds more like your opinion being passed as fact. How do you know this, was there a study or some article about how climbers route read and climb? Maybe next time preface with something like " I think most climbers...."

[@dylanhammond4718]

I keep thinking hes talking in first person

[@alexanderfradis9026]

Glad you share my admiration of Ai Mori. I saw her in Toulouse in 2019 and literally fell in love with her style and composure.

[@daviewavie112]

She looks more flexible than the other climbers

[@ADD_ition]

The new IT... what a genius

[@titkos8]

i found very much your analitic videos :)

[@bohodance]

The comments...yikes. It's always this undertone with non european/americans athletes I wonder why.

[@areteclimbing]

I don’t understand. What is 'Yikes' about the comments? And why do you think they would be different if it was an American athlete? 🤷‍♂️

[@AlanDuque-gb1yw]

Great video, mate! Trough your content I learn so much about climbing technique and culture. Thank you so much!!!

[@Frisbieinstein]

Mori means "forest."

[@Khan_2025]

in this game, Janja did the same thing. But when Ai do it, people think it's amazing. I guess it's because Janja was more powerful.......

[@Dave1507]

janja doesn't look like a five year old.

[@Annchyiho]

i mean, in Koper, Ai Chan also won a few more moves than Janja and brought her a Gold. Look forward having the 2 in the world cup more in 2023!

[@TheRausing1]

“Did you see that?” 2:58 Um no because the actual move was cut out? Am I missing something?

[@CoNteMpTone]

Weighting 20 kilograms has benefits too

[@Sofia-zc7gg]

I appreciate the observations in these videos but I really don't like how the speech in these videos are so certain about what's going on in the head of a climber without ever talking to them... Just change the speech, don't say "Ai Mori sees this x and x way" like it's a fact, say "I think she sees things this way because..." Or "after my observations of the last x days and x videos I believe she sees things this way because.." , or just abstain from making assumptions about what people you never talked to think or do

[@jamesbeards9208]

Thank you for saying Edinburgh correctly, every time I hear a non British person pronounce it "Edin-burrow" it always makes me cringe

[@govelasco]

The video cut of the first clip is awful, the moment is completely chopped.

[@andysPARK]

She's kinda a genius

[@nullproof]

can you add this to your climbing styles playlist?

[@foreversolely]

5:10 her leg oml

[@kyopan23]

Comp kids keep evolving

[@muumarlin1731]

Awesome video - thanks for an interesting breakdown!

[@justinchanut9508]

What about the deeper implications of philosophical absurdism to this.

[@cariiinen]

Fun!

[@slimebossfan]

Great video! well done!

[@AidenDesJames]

*Skips her doing the move* "Did you see that?" Bruh..

[@nikcezar2445]

she is lighter so makes sanse in a way

[@OtesOtesOtes]

The gunshot was -cringe- triggering But otherwise nice video

[@hotsauce0097]

There are multiple times in this video where you ask “did you see that” however, when u first play the clip before asking that, the clip is cut, so the viewer does not see what ur referencing. It is only after you ask “did u see that”, and play the clip again, this time in full, that we see it. Idk y u do this

[@digitalphanes206]

good, tall people piss me off

[@tomtookthat]

03:00 You've skipped the move... twice!? Ngl but I think this video needs work man. A quarter of the way in and the script isn't great and editing is poor

[@kanislurper]

You speculate way too much on that athletes states of mind or thinking process...

[@addohm]

2nd

[@susanford9741]

Promo-SM 😋

[@ShayHowardBennett]

first

[@biancadickerson4327]

That’s absurd!

[@TheDaruiKumo]

bad audio mixing