Klaas Willems: "Still Alive" - A life on the rock against cystic fibrosis

When the mind believes something is feasible, the body rises to the challenge.” In sport, as in life, we all know how important willpower is when it comes to winning a challenge or achieving a result. When the goal is to stay alive, stubbornness becomes our greatest ally. This is the case of Klaas Willems, an athlete of the LaSportiva team who suffers from cystic fibrosis and has made climbing into the driving force behind his precarious existence. The illness affecting Klaas causes problems with the respiratory and digestive systems and leads to a reduced life expectancy, one that rarely exceeds two decades. Klaas managed to cross this imaginary, statistical-scientific bar some time ago, thanks to his determination to survive that was driven by his love of climbing. The rockface has become his oxygen, Ulassai, in Sardinia, his new home: this magical village is situated in the centre-east of the island, identified as the Blue Zone, a term used to denominate those areas of the Earth where life expectancy is much higher than the global average, due to quality of life enjoyed there. Here, Klaas found the courage to tell his story in Still Alive, a film about his life that will be released in June and which documents his fight against cystic fibrosis and the two tumours that he has also suffered.

Klaas, the doctors say you should have died about ten years ago, but you're still here. What can you tell us about that?

When I was growing up, there weren't many treatments for cystic fibrosis so the doctors prepped my parents by explaining that there was very little chance of me finishing high school. Over the years, the therapies have improved but I really didn't expect to live past the age of twenty-five. Before I began climbing, at the age of eighteen, I had never made any plans for the future: I thought I didn't have one. But in climbing, I found something that I really liked, moreover, it is an activity that requires commitment and training to improve, which for me meant having to always be physically fit, something I had never bothered about before because I thought it wasn't worth my while. At that time, I was living with people my own age; they all smoked at home, so when the doctors scared me, saying that if I didn't want to die within a few years I had to radically change my lifestyle, I listened to them. Everyone experiences illness in their own way: I didn't think I'd live very long, and it was only when I discovered climbing that I experienced the desire to push myself to my limits and see how far I could go.

You said, "When you have something to live for, everything is easier." Do you think climbing saved your life?

Yes! It really did. I needed something to motivate me, to drive me on. We all need goals and stimuli: everyone finds their raison d'être in different places. I found it in climbing, which allowed me to live in the moment, savour the present, without thinking about the future.

What does it actually mean to have cystic fibrosis, in terms of your everyday life? How does it affect you while you climb?

The biggest problems involve the digestive and respiratory systems. For this reason, endurance activities are much harder; the body does not have enough energy for certain challenges. Climbing requires your heart and lungs to work well, and it takes a lot of energy so, naturally, I struggle more than other people. Furthermore, with age the clinical picture worsens and, although progress has been made in recent years, to date the therapies aim only to stabilise the condition. I think the hardest moments were hearing everyone say that, because I was sick, I couldn't do certain things, like climbing at high altitudes. Thanks to climbing, little by little, I realised that, actually, I was able to carry out many of those activities that had appeared forbidden to me. Ultimately, the biggest challenge was figuring out how far I could go.

How much has the mental strength needed to climb helped you in dealing with the disease and, vice versa, how has cystic fibrosis made you more courageous when climbing?

“When the mind believes something is feasible, the body rises to the challenge.” We are capable of extraordinary things, things so incredible that most people don't even believe they have the capacity to do them. I wanted to show everyone that, even if you have cystic fibrosis, you can do great things. I have found joy and satisfaction in demonstrating to others what I am capable of. I think cystic fibrosis helped me cope with the cancer I had: I already knew how to mentally relate to one disease, so when a new one came along, it was as though I was, in some way,already prepared.

What made you decide to live in Sardinia, and, in particular, in Ulassai?

In Belgium we are a little more introverted; it is almost as though we don't want to show others that we live somewhere nice, while here, people can't wait to show you how beautiful their land is! In Ulassai, there is a lot of virgin rock and ample possibilities for opening up new routes, plus the climbing style is very technical, my favourite. The air quality is also excellent, an important factor for my lungs. In Sardinia, people are super-hospitable and welcoming, plus the whole environment is really wonderful! Here, as you walk through the streets, the inhabitants will offer you a glass of wine, fruit and vegetables: it took me three years before I managed to pay my own tab at the bar; there was always someone offering to pay for my coffee! They are very generous people; I feel very welcome.

You have opened up many new routes in Sardinia. Which is your favourite?

I like there to be a story behind the names of the routes I open. That's why Still Alive is definitely a special route for me. At the moment, though, my favourite is I Ribelli della Montagna, up Punta Argennas, the first multi-pitch route I established, linked together with Mathias Mandi. I Ribelli della Montagna is the title of a song by the Modena City Ramblers, who recently played in Sardinia, a really fantastic concert!

What was it like working on the film Still Alive, which tells your life story?

It was a rather complex process and lasted many years. For some time, I had been thinking I ought to find a way to tell my story but I wasn't quite sure how to go about it so I waited for the right moment. When I had cancer for the second time, I made videos while I was in the hospital, during treatment. Then La Sportiva and Petzl decided to sponsor me. I told them my story and the two companies decided to finance the film. I am really happy with the result and the exceptional work done by the director, Santino Martirano, and, of course, I am also grateful to La Sportiva and Petzl.

Why do you think it was important to talk about your experience?

Often, when I told friends about my illness, they took my story to heart and often told me I should share my experience. I had unintentionally become a point of reference for other people with cystic fibrosis who, seeing me climb, thought maybe they, too, could do so, considering how much it had helped me. The goal of this film is not to show how strong I am, but to encourage and inspire other people: when life doesn't go the way we expected, there is still hope. I've waited a long time to make the film and now I want it to be seen by as many people as possible.

What does it mean to you to share your experience with other cystic fibrosis sufferers and with the outdoor community?

When I started climbing I thought that all the stuff I do today was out of the question, just because I'd never tried it. I believed I could never climb at high altitudes, and yet I reached an altitude of five thousand metres. With this film, I want to show people that we can achieve goals that maybe never even occur to us because we believe they are beyond our reach. It's always worth trying to make your dreams come true.

What effect did seeing yourself on video so 'naked' in front of the camera?

I cried! I've never been particularly proud of what I've done. I've always played it down, saying that, deep down, I wasn't all that sick, but when I saw myself in the film, I looked at my whole life from another perspective and, for the first time, I was really proud of myself. I wanted to make this film to inspire other people but instead, unexpectedly, I was the first person to draw strength and inspiration from it. It was something quite special.

Do you have film presentation evenings planned?

The premiere of the film will take place on 14 June at the Chamonix Film Festival. I will take part and I am very curious to know what the public will think and what questions they will ask me. At the end of June, there will be another film festival, in Tuscany, where Still Alive will be screened and I will be present there too.

What plans do you have for the future?

Thanks to the new therapies, for the first time in my life, I feel like making plans for the future. There are a few places I would really like to see: I would like to climb El Capitan, in Yosemite, and go on an expedition to open new routes in some really remote place, for example in Greenland. I've never embarked on adventures like this because I've always worried that, if I got sick, the whole expedition would be upset because of me, but now that my lungs have stabilised, I can finally think about having these experiences.

What would you like to say to the you of ten years ago?

Dream big! Ten years ago, I never thought I'd be able to do what I have done. I thought I'd be dead by twenty-five but today I'm thirty-seven and I'm still here, and in my prime.

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