In conversation with Andrea Kümin.
Ever since Andrea Kümin visited her first climbing centre in a pushchair, she has been hooked on climbing. She made her first moves on the wall at the age of four. During the school holidays, she went rock climbing with her parents. “I started with rope climbing before getting into bouldering later on,” says the exceptionally talented Andrea. At the beginning, she did a range of sports, including athletics, girl’s gym and climbing for fun. Then, in 2008, she was accepted into the regional squad. This was followed by her first national competitions, and in 2011 she joined the national team, competed in international competitions and, since 2017, has been one of the best sport climbers in Switzerland.
She now lives in Bern, has a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the FernUni Schweiz and has started a master’s degree at the University of Bern. And despite her workload, she has still found time to talk to her sponsor Cornèrcard.
Andrea, you have pretty much been climbing since you were a baby. Where do you feel most comfortable?
Definitely vertically. I prefer bouldering, which is climbing without a rope at jump height. I train for competitions indoors on artificial climbing walls. Outdoor bouldering is a good alternative, it’s fun and ideal for holidays.
What do you particularly enjoy about climbing?
Climbing is extremely versatile. You can climb in a climbing gym or on rock, you can invest all your strength in short, maximum-strength boulders or fight your way up long endurance routes. Every climbing problem is unique, the movements are always new, I find that exciting.
Do you find time to climb outside besides the competitions?
Yes, for me rock climbing is a nice change from everyday training. Ticino has excellent conditions, especially in autumn and winter. My favourite place to go is Brione in the Valle Verzasca. But there are also countless boulder problems to solve in Cresciano and Chironico. Besides physical fitness, problem-solving skills, creativity and mental strength are important factors for success in climbing.
How would you explain bouldering to someone new to the sport?
You climb at jump-off height, without a safety rope or climbing harness, but with mats on the floor to protect you. In a competition, the winner is the person who reaches the top hold in the wall with the fewest attempts. In the competition, five boulder problems have to be solved within five minutes, with a five-minute break between each problem. The competition takes place in what is known as ‘on-sight’ mode. This means that you can’t watch each other and have to find your own way.
What was the most difficult moment in your career?
That was definitely the injury last year. Shortly after finishing on the podium at the Climbing World Cup in Meiringen, I injured my foot and spent twelve weeks in a cast. As a result, I missed the entire Bouldering World Cup season and it took me a long time to get back to my current level of training.
“Besides strength, problem-solving skills, creativity and mental strength are important factors for success in climbing.” – Andrea Kümin
And how are you preparing for the World Championships?
My training is no different than it has been up to now. I do a lot of bouldering and I do strength training twice a week. Since the movements involved in bouldering are usually very complex, I believe that climbing itself is the best training for climbing. I usually train for 15 to 25 hours a week. Then there are the competitions. I also invest a lot in mental training.
How can you study with all that on your plate?
I don’t. I’ve deliberately put my master’s degree on hold so that I can fully concentrate on the World Championships.
Do you feel any special pressure ahead of this home World Championships?
A World Championship is clearly more important than a World Cup, and a home World Championship means even more to me emotionally. But ultimately, it’s a climbing competition in which I’ll do my five boulders as usual and give my best. I’ll concentrate on myself, my competition routine and my climbing. And of course, I’ll enjoy the home crowd.
And what is the roadmap for the 2024 Olympics in Paris?
In climbing (lead and bouldering combined), only the top 20 athletes will compete in Paris. So just qualifying for the Olympics is a huge challenge. At the World Championships in Bern, three of the 20 starting places/quotas up for grabs. That means climbing to the podium in the Olympic combined. That will be extremely difficult. Or you secure a place by winning the European Championships in October. That is/will be extremely difficult too, so it’s not my primary focus. My plan/goal is to be invited to the global selection competitions in spring 2024 via the overall World Cup 2023. The remaining places will be up for grabs there.
How do you achieve perfect body tension in your training?
When you’re climbing, you are automatically training your body tension, especially when you’re climbing overhanging walls and want to keep your feet on the wall. But of course, I also incorporate a few tension exercises into my strength training. They don’t take long but are very intense, for example hanging exercises or toes-to-bar.
And what about finger strength? It seems to me that this is crucial.
My advice to beginners would be to do as much climbing as possible. For the first ten years, I just climbed and didn’t do any specific training. That’s how you develop finger strength automatically.
And what do you do when you’re not climbing?
On my days off, I like to go out into nature, meet up with friends or read a book. I also want to resume my master’s degree next semester, to give myself an alternative to sport. But climbing is becoming more and more professional, with the level and competitiveness getting higher every year. So sport has to be a high priority and you have to invest a lot to be able to keep up with the world’s best.
What are your dreams for the future?
My podium finish in front of the home crowd at the final in Meiringen has already fulfilled a long-time ambition. But in general, I hope to be able to do the things that make me happy in life.
Thank you very much for the interview, Andrea!

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