Bulls at the top

After a double victory for the team in Fiera di Primiero, Italy, the second this year, it’s clear that a Red Bull athlete is going to be the bouldering overall World Cup winner 2008. Will it be David Lama, 17, who’ll win his first title, or Kilian Fischhuber, 24, his third? A double interview:

What’s the goal in climbing, the wall or getting to the top?

Fischhuber: Getting to the top.

Lama: You climb because you want to conquer the wall – but the goal is always to get somewhere.

... and when the World Cup is the wall and winning it the pinnacle victory?

Lama: Then it’s basically the same ...

Fischhuber: ... but the difference is that every individual win in a World Cup contest is a pinnacle. The overall World Cup can thus be compared with a whole chain of mountains.

The toughest rival for the overall title for the two of you is both a compatriot and a Red Bull-team-mate. What effects does this have on your competition battle?

Lama: None, because we strictly separate friendship and contests. We train together and often go out together because we only live ten kilometres apart. But in a tournament we are tough competitors.

Fischhuber: It would probably be different if we had to compete against each other within the team. But that’s not the case with us.

You know each other’s strengths and weakness better than other adversaries. What makes David/Kilian particularly dangerous, and what is his weak point?

Fischhuber: David’s strength is that he can concentrate on the essentials with great intensity, and follow through 100 percent with everything he plans. I can’t think of any real weaknesses.

Lama: Kilian’s strength is his consistency. For years now he’s been among the top three or five in every contest. This is something I have to work on. In the last three years he hasn’t always been able to demonstrate what he’s really made of at major events, but there must have been a lot of bad luck involved.

In Italy you celebrated the second double victory for the team. What’s the reason for your dominance?

Fischhuber: I think that we’re both very balanced, can adapt very well to different challenges – and we train cunningly.

Lama: Innsbruck is also a fantastic place to train. There’s always international competition there. One week, a female Belgian climber, the next, a former World Champion from the Czech Republic. You can really learn a lot from observation, and you notice what weaknesses you have yourself and need to work on. In training, Kilian and I push each other really hard.

Ahead of you now are two bouldering contests, the next one on July 4 and 5 in Montauban, France, and the last one in November in Moscow. Kilian, how are you going to approach these contests in order to defend your lead over David?

Fischhuber: I don’t think about that at all. You can’t speculate but have to take one step at a time, and concentrate on the immediate task.

And what strategy do you have to get rid of your deficit, David?

Lama: I don’t have a strategy. I just climb as well as I can. But I don’t think I have much chance of winning the title. In the season up to now I’ve simply been too inconsistent – I did win twice, but didn’t even get into the finals in two competitions. I’m simply lacking these points. But I still have the EC and the Rock Master, and for these contests I’ve got quite a lot planned.

And what will you reward yourself with if you win?

Lama: Don’t know yet. First I have to see to it that I get some more continuity in my results.

Fischhuber: After the bouldering season I’m taking a break from contests; I’ll finally be able to do some rock climbing. For that I’ve already planned a three-week trip to South Africa in August.