Alipour ‘not done yet’ as he gears up for Paris wall
By Amirhadi Arsalanpour
Staff writer
Iranian speed climber Reza Alipour says he pursued the Olympic berth for “20 long years”, though a place in Paris will not be the ceiling of his ambitions.
The 30-year-old Iranian made history when he punched his ticket for the French capital in the Olympic Qualifier Series in Budapest last week, becoming the first climber to represent the country in the Games.
“I finished in the top six in the Shanghai series and collected 31 points to edge closer to the Olympic spot. I ended 13th in Budapest but an overall tally of 63 points over the two series was enough for me to be among the five athletes progressing to the Games. In fact, the event in China was the launch pad for my qualification,” Alipour told Mehr News Agency.
“I worked my socks off for 20 long years to reach the Olympics,” said the Iranian, adding: “I’m not done yet and will have further goals in Paris, though I will keep it to myself as I don’t want to raise the expectations. I’ll just keep working hard to deliver my best performance in the Games.”
Alipour’s record-breaking performance in the 2017 Climbing World Cup – where the footage of him scaling the 15-meter wall in 5.48 seconds went viral on social media – saw the Iranian earn the nicknames of ‘Persian Cheetah’ and ‘Usain Bolt of speed climbing’ before he faded away from the international stage over the course of the following five years.
When he stepped into last year’s Hangzhou Asian Games he was regarded as an underdog as some high-profile names of the sport – including Indonesian then-world record holder Veddriq Leonardo and world silver medalist Long Jinbao of China – competed for the top prize.
However, the Iranian beat all odds to leave China with the coveted gold and will now be seeking a more prestigious triumph in Paris.
“Nothing is predictable in climbing. Milliseconds literally play a decisive part in the sport and that is why you can’t be confident of one’s victory in a competition. The battle against the gravity is the major challenge for every climber.”