A climbing safety expert is conducting training workshops for teachers following near-fatal accidents at climbing walls in Dubai.
Two falls at different climbing walls within 48 hours in September raised safety questions about the sport.
Traks Pro, a rope access training company and distributor for the climbing equipment manufacturer Petzl, hosted a clinic this week on climbing safety to a team that will pass this knowledge on to new climbers.
"It was initially in reaction to the accidents at the local climbing walls," said Alex Sims of Traks Pro.
Mohamed Alavian, 24, an aviation student from Iran, suffered fractures to an arm and his skull after a 12-metre fall at the Dorell Sports climbing wall at the World Trade Centre on September 8. Two days later, Ahmad Daood, 29, a Jordanian, broke both legs and an arm after falling eight metres at the Adventure HQ climbing pinnacle at Times Square Mall. He is expected to be in a wheelchair for a further two weeks.
"I suppose we realised the community was growing and there is a lack of awareness of the safety elements of climbing," Ms Sims said. "A lot of people know of the risks but a lot don't know about the more intricate details involved in safety."
Chris Blakeley, a manager at Petzl, said there was a need to instruct climbers on basic techniques.
"There is a recent history locally and worldwide of major incidents at climbing walls, which could have been completely eliminated by a simple safety check," Mr Blakeley said.
Safety checks are conducted by the climbing partner. "The idea of a partner check is you have a second pair of eyes," he said.
The course, supervised by Mr Blakeley, trained five instructors in the UAE and Saudi Arabia who could pass their knowledge on to climbers. "I'm assessing the abilities on the knowledge acquisition of the coaches being trained," Mr Blakeley said.
Dave Gerbeer, a fourth-grade teacher from Gems World Academy who is one of the climbing trainers supervised by Mr Blakeley, said: "It's really good to come in and get the answers to those questions. When you climb with different people, they use different techniques."
Ms Sims said Petzl could explain how the equipment was intended to be properly used.
Belaying, a method of holding the rope that prevents a falling climber from hitting the ground, was an important part of the process.
"There's the correct method of belaying and Petzl products are similar [to other brands], and there is a gesture that is common to all of them. The rope feeding into the device is controlled by the hand. A lack of attention on the control rope is a major discrepancy," Mr Blakeley said.
Mr Gerbeer said learning how to pass the message on in the easiest and most direct way would help give first-time climbers the correct information on the importance of safety.
"A lot of first climbers say they will not be able to do that, but if you show them the proper techniques it will boost their confidence and they'll climb a bit higher," he said.
eharnan@thenational.ae
You Were Never Really Here
Director: Lynne Ramsay
Starring: Joaquim Phoenix, Ekaterina Samsonov
Four stars
Overview
What: The Arab Women’s Sports Tournament is a biennial multisport event exclusively for Arab women athletes.
When: From Sunday, February 2, to Wednesday, February 12.
Where: At 13 different centres across Sharjah.
Disciplines: Athletics, archery, basketball, fencing, Karate, table tennis, shooting (rifle and pistol), show jumping and volleyball.
Participating countries: Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Qatar and UAE.
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
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The Bio
Favourite Emirati dish: I have so many because it has a lot of herbs and vegetables. Harees (oats with chicken) is one of them
Favourite place to go to: Dubai Mall because it has lots of sports shops.
Her motivation: My performance because I know that whatever I do, if I put the effort in, I’ll get results
During her free time: I like to drink coffee - a latte no sugar and no flavours. I do not like cold drinks
Pet peeve: That with every meal they give you a fries and Pepsi. That is so unhealthy
Advice to anyone who wants to be an ironman: Go for the goal. If you are consistent, you will get there. With the first one, it might not be what they want but they should start and just do it
UAE SQUAD
Ahmed Raza (Captain), Rohan Mustafa, Jonathan Figy, CP Rizwan, Junaid Siddique, Mohammad Usman, Basil Hameed, Zawar Farid, Vriitya Aravind (WK), Waheed Ahmed, Karthik Meiyappan, Zahoor Khan, Darius D'Silva, Chirag Suri
If you go
Flight connections to Ulaanbaatar are available through a variety of hubs, including Seoul and Beijing, with airlines including Mongolian Airlines and Korean Air. While some nationalities, such as Americans, don’t need a tourist visa for Mongolia, others, including UAE citizens, can obtain a visa on arrival, while others including UK citizens, need to obtain a visa in advance. Contact the Mongolian Embassy in the UAE for more information.
Nomadic Road offers expedition-style trips to Mongolia in January and August, and other destinations during most other months. Its nine-day August 2020 Mongolia trip will cost from $5,250 per person based on two sharing, including airport transfers, two nights’ hotel accommodation in Ulaanbaatar, vehicle rental, fuel, third party vehicle liability insurance, the services of a guide and support team, accommodation, food and entrance fees; nomadicroad.com
A fully guided three-day, two-night itinerary at Three Camel Lodge costs from $2,420 per person based on two sharing, including airport transfers, accommodation, meals and excursions including the Yol Valley and Flaming Cliffs. A return internal flight from Ulaanbaatar to Dalanzadgad costs $300 per person and the flight takes 90 minutes each way; threecamellodge.com
