Athletics
Sonja Johanson’s lightning-fast performance on the speed wall at Canadian nationals earned her a trip to this summer’s world championships in Arco, Italy, making her the first MAC climber to qualify for the event. BY JUSTIN ROHM / PHOTO BY ADAM WICKHAM
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AC climber Sonja Johanson spends at least 10 hours each week practicing for climbing competitions. Now she’s going to need to make a little time to study Italian. Johanson won a Canadian speed climbing national championship in May, automatically qualifying her for August’s International Federation of Sport Climbing Youth World Championships in Arco, Italy. Johanson, who has dual citizenship, is the first MAC climber to qualify for worlds in any discipline.
The Competition Johanson traveled to Central Saanich, British Columbia, a small town a half-hour north of Victoria, in mid-May for the Canadian National Championship for sport and speed climbing. The weekend didn’t start on a high note. Johanson, 14, just missed qualifying for the sport climbing semifinals. She tied for 17th place, and only the top 16 athletes advanced. Speed climbing was a different story. She qualified in first place with a time of 14.04 seconds, then advanced through a series of knockout rounds to the final, where she faced off against second-place qualifier Aleda Toronitz. Toronitz had placed just behind Johanson with a time of 14.3 seconds. In the final round, Johanson shattered her personal best, and finished a full second ahead of her competitor, winning the title for her age group in a time of 12.82 seconds. “Winning this title improved my self-confidence greatly. Knowing that I was able to place first will help me compete better at worlds in Arco,” Johanson says. “I look forward to racing with athletes from around the world.”
The Climbing Speed climbing is perhaps the most exciting indoor climbing discipline for the casual fan to watch. It is a head-to-head competition where two athletes climb next to each other on identical routes, and the first climber to the top wins. MAC added a speed-climbing wall during the Climbing Gym expansion last year, and while it’s only been complete for six months, climbers already are seeing its dividends. “The wall has proven to be an invaluable training asset for athletes in this discipline, with Sonja being an important influence and motivator among her peers,” says head climbing Coach Drew White.
The Competitor Johanson, who just finished her freshman year at Saint Mary’s Academy, began climbing in sixth grade. Now in her fourth year on the MAC Climbing Team, she is excited to be the second MAC climber named to a national team and the first national champion. While she also competes in sport climbing and bouldering, speed climbing is her strongest discipline, and the one she is most passionate about. The team trains speed twice a week during practice, but she typically comes in at least once more to get extra time on the route. Johanson also has found a good friend and training partner in Sidney Trinidad, a national champion from the Vertical World climbing team in Seattle. Johanson has benefited greatly from working with Trinidad, and the two make regular trips to train with each other. Last year Trinidad was the USA Climbing Female Youth B National Champion in bouldering, sport and speed climbing, and competed at the IFSC Youth World Championships, where she took second place in her category. While she also has put in strong performances in bouldering and sport climbing, Johanson is drawn to the speed wall. “I like the adrenaline in speed climbing, because you have such a short window of time to climb in, about 10 seconds for 15 meters,” she says. “It takes a great deal of concentration not to psych yourself out right before you climb. I like the suspense of approaching the wall and the simplicity of a race. Once you get on the wall, you rely on pure muscle memory instead of thinking out each move.” Since Sonja holds dual citizenship in the United States and Canada, she is allowed to compete in both the Canadian and United States National Championship competitions. At the Northwest Regional U.S. Championship for sport and speed climbing in Bozeman, Montana, Johanson finished sixth in sport and second in speed, qualifying her for the Division 1 Championships in Bend, after The Winged M went to press. At Divisionals, she will be accompanied by 20 of her teammates, including former U.S. National Team member Brett Walker. They are competing to advance to the U.S. National Championship in July in Atlanta. WM
july 2015
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