Two World Records, One Country- What is Indonesia's Secret?

Vedderiq Leonardo and Kiromal Katibin: #1 & #2 in the World!

May 28th will be a day to remember in the history of speed climbing. On Friday morning, Kiromal Katibin took full advantage of his early qualifying race to let the world know: I am here.

Not to be outdone by his fellow countryman, Vedderiq Leonardo would also break the previous world record multiple times during his qualifying rounds leading up to the final, racing to a 5.37 and 5.428. 

He would however save the best for last in a dramatic final vs Kiromal. If Kiromal used the morning as his arrival announcement, Vedderiq would use the night to sound an alarm. Skip to 1:05.50 if it doesn't auto play at the right spot.



I can't wait to dive in and examine both races. The 5m-10m section for Leonardo in the final has me extremely interested to see what his average velocity was. My brain wants me to believe it's the fastest I've seen, but I'll wait until I see some data to verify that.

I am also excited to see a country have such a potent 1-2 combination. Whether it was talent selection/identification, training, culture, or the combination of all three, this is a wake up call to all other national organizations that you can not stumble upon the talent that is needed to win in speed climbing.

These are exciting times and I can't wait to see the first sub 5 get dropped. With speed climbing gaining popularity across the world and attracting more top talent, it is only a matter of time before 5.208 is a memory.

Later speed freaks!

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