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Only now, with the first Difficulty World Cup, the competition season
really begins. The City Council of Chamonix desired strongly this event at
the foot of Mont Blanc, and they practically devoted an entire week to the
promotion of climbing. A real change from the past, now that climbing has
gained importance compared with mountaineering in each of its forms. At
last a sport recognition in the most conservative and important place of
Europe, may be of the world, regarding the mountaineering world. A nice
climbing wall was built in the ENSA place, near the famous alpine school,
in the centre of Chamonix. Unfortunately the bad weather troubled the
event. Rain and wind ruined the competition, particularly during Wednesday.
After a few interruptions of the outside competition the organisation
decides to make the quarter finals inside, in the ENSA artificial climbing
wall. Hastily setted routes also, and as consequence 53 chains in the
men's field, a clearly too easy route and whose results are totally
ininfluential for the following competition. Not so bad. On Thursday the
weather is better and it is possible to climb outside. The competition
goes on, with pauses and interruptions until the end, that anyway
continues to provide great satisfactions for the Italian team.
The reigning World Champion Lagni shows that he is still the world's best,
confirming to his detractors his capabilities, and that it wasn't for a
lucky coincidence that he won his title, without having an absolute value
as athlete. This win has even a better taste because of that, to make more
evident the determination and will of somebody working full time and still
able to beat the "professionals" behind him. Last cherry on the
cake, of the series "in Vicenza we are the best", the start in
the senior WC of 16-year-old Jenny Lavarda, who reaches the final at her
first try. Not bad indeed! Anyway in Chamonix there have been many
surprises, regarding the ranking, with the first WC win of the beautiful
Stephanie Bodet, who until now had never been able to beat the aggressive
competitors Sansoz and Sarkany. We must say that the women's final was
under a deluge and a hold of the route was totally wet. Anyway Bodet won
because she was able to stick the hold better than the others. Let's wait
for the next competition, to see what happens.
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