http://www.express.co.jp/ALLES/1/1hirayama2.html

Free Climber
YUJI HIRAYAMA


Climbing wall just using my own hands and legs--
I think Free climbing is an awesome game



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HIRAYAMA Movie (QTM,1.0MB)
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Yuji Hirayama was born in February 23, 1969, in Tokyo.
He is 173 cm tall and weighs 61 kg.
He started climbing when he was 15 years old
and came to the top when he was 17.
That year he left vocational school and moved to the United States.
He moved to France at the age of 19.
He won the 8th place at the International Competition
in Marseilles in 1988, at which he made his debut.
He climbed up to the 2nd place at the World Championships in 1991,
meanwhile he won the championship at several competitions.
With his cheerfulness and talent for Free climbing,
he , who is now 26, challenge to win the world title.



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Free climbing is a kind of Rock climbing. It is to move upward by making use of only your hands and legs. You are not allowed to use any instrument. The rope
a climber is only allowed to use is a life belt. Therefore, climbers have to climb without being dependent on the rope. Derived from Alpine climbing, which
you may use various kinds of mountain-climbing equipments, Free climbing developed as a sport. You are to climb rocks outside and artificial wall at
competition that are very complex and steeply slanting. Here, the higher you get, the better climber you are.
Being an only professional Free climber in Japan, Yuji accepted our interview. He didn't put on the air of a professional climber, instead he was a man of
cheerfulness and of a pure heart like a boy. He had a very nice smile. Excerpts:



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Could you tell me about your boyhood?



I really liked playing outside. We always did something challenging. For example, we tried if we could jump over a fence. I played baseball, too. I remember
I had a glove when I was very little. I was a small boy, but I was good at athletics and I was proud of it. Any time I ran a race, I said to myself " I
won't lose!" I wanted to be an athlete. I was watching Mr. Seko running and breaking the tape, maybe at Fukuoka International Marathon Race, when I was 7.
That struck me and I came to have an interest in that sort of tough race. My father was an athlete when he was young and took me to watch a marathon
sometimes. I came to admire Mr. Seko and winning a gold medal became my dream. I belonged to field track club at junior high school. I'm still a short guy,
but at that time I was extremely short. I was the shortest, or the 2nd shortest in my class. Anyway I could run fast till my second year in junior high
school. But other guys started beating me. Then I started losing confidence, thinking that I didn't have talent for an athlete.



Why did you start Free climbing?



After I left the club and school, I still wanted to do something challenging. Sometimes I went biking, pretending that I was a power ranger! One day I took
a bike trip to Ibaragi. Then I saw Mt. Tsukuba far ahead of me. I decided to get there, which took me one hour. When I got there, I wanted to climb it. So I
started climbing and when I got to the top, I was just happy to have done something athletic. Besides, I thought I could do this kind of stuff without
competing against anyone, but just by working out by myself. I liked to set up my own goal and achieve it. There were other reasons ( that I started Free
climbing), like I saw the beautiful blue sky. But the very reason was that I could just do it with my own pace without competing.



What attracted you in terms of Free climbing?



I tend to get engaged in one thing. Whenever I take an interest in something, I wish to keep it up and get better of it. When I came to have an interest in
marathon, I also wanted to be a fast runner. So I jogged every day, seeking for success. I just go for it whenever I find something fascinating. The first
time I did Rock climbing, I couldn't take some route. Then I wanted to make it the next time. I followed advice other people gave me. I never thought of the
value of climbing. I didn't think I had to study( to be a climber), either. I just went for it.


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The emergence of Yuji Hirayama was very striking to Japan's Free climbing field. That 15-year-old boy seemed to climb without any difficulty. Everyone
thought he was a genius. He started having career in abroad. He moved to America at the age 17 and to France at the age 19.


Why did you move out to America and France?



I took an interest in the walls of foreign-made. There was no artificial wall in Japan at that time, and I wanted to try something new. In France, there are
number of rocky places and routes. Japan had limited places to make routes. So I thought I would have no more new route to challenge soon. So getting out of
Japan was the thing I wanted to do to continue climbing.



What was the impression on Free climbing out there?



The first thing that struck me was that their style of climbing was different from one another, just like the color of the skin was different. I was
impressed by the fact that American way and European way were different, even though they were both white. I vaguely felt that my style would be like
European's in a long run. That made me move to Europe.



What was the European style that affected you?



They take a hold accurately without one-millimeter's lag. On the first look, they know immediately the type of a route and then work on it mechanically.
They also know how to move their legs in a second. American and Japanese climbers take much time to find a hold. Probably it is the way European construct
their thought, taking a look at something and then know every detail.

 Yuji Hirayama lives in a little suburb in Marseilles, France. He enjoys climbing in the neighbor rocky places. In France, where there is higher
appreciation of sports, Yuji is much more famous. He is known as a man who climbs most beautifully.



What is the style you wish to acquire?



I like French style and I took some of it. My original style, which was Japanese or Asian was mixed up well with that of French. I move smoothly and
accurately. When I come across a route that I can't figure out, I make use of my feelings and try to paint the wall. That's it.



What mental condition are you usually in at competition?



When I'm in the best condition, I feel like I can do anything, I don't feel like I will have any trouble. My body moves by itself. I know everything when I
read route before climbing. I know what's next. I feel I'm doing a great thing. I can move freely and I've got power. I believe in my ability, so I won't be
afraid of anything. On the other hand, when I don't have confidence or I've got a cold, I hurt my finger and so on, I keep it in mind that I can't waste any
minute. In that condition, I'm rather angry. I'll just hang on a hold and never let it go. I'll be desperate.



What is the feeling when you can' t reach the next hold?



When I fall off, that's terrible. But whether you can make it or not is hard to tell till the last moment. So I never let myself fall. I prepare for the
worst scenario. I don't choose to give myself up. At the World Championships, I was half way through when I hit a hold. It was farther than I thought. I
noticed that I misread the route and tried to trace back. I was tired out by then. When I decided to take another way, I fell off.


CONTINUE

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 One of the attract points of Free climbing is Rock climbing, which is to climb rocks with only our own hands and legs. Yuji Hirayama does not only get a
high score at competitions, but keeps climbing rocks all over the world, challenging the nature and himself.


What is the difference between Rock climbing and Free climbing in terms of attractiveness?



In Rock climbing, you challenge the nature. You have limited ability to route. If you can't make it today, you want to try it again the next day. To
accomplish it, you'll train yourself physically and mentally. You may want to acquire some techniques. You go through some training and go back to the
place. That route will never go anywhere, unlike the one at competition. It's been there and it will always be there so you can keep trying forever.



What route was the most unforgettable to you?



Yosemite in America. It was the first time I was in abroad . Everything I saw was huge; cars, roads,---and so on. The mountain was like 1.000 meter high and
4.5 km wide. It was like huge rock. It was sitting there with dignity. It was great. I couldn't wait to climb it. There was a straight line up toward the
top, though the route was not so dynamic. The dignity of rocks reminded me that I was on the other side of the earth.



What place was the toughest to climb?



I had the most painful time at La Rose et le Vampire in France. I gave it a try many times and had fallen off about 6 times. Whenever I came to a certain
point, I felt that I would fall. It was due to psychological thing rather than physical. Anyway I went back there the following year. During the year I was
away from the place, I was not thinking only of the route, but was climbing other routes both at competitions and outside. When I was back there, I felt it
was getting much easier. Finally I made it.I remember that feeling as if I just watched the video tape. Yes I remember how I read the rock and everything.



What is the unique charm point of Free climbing?



*Free climbing is what you do with your own hands and legs. That is an owesome game, the greatest game. * As for climbing snowy-mountains or the Himalayas,
you proceed, nailing down some tools. In that case, when a new product comes out, old ones will be disregarded. I don't think it's fun to use equipments.
It's not my way.


*HIRAYAMA Interview Movie* (QTM,1.1MB)


To wrap up our interview, could you tell us your future goal and dreams?



There is World Championships in 2 years. I'll try to win the chanpionship. That's one thing. And I think I'll keep climbing for the rest of my life. I've
been doing it to see how I have made progress in terms of tactics and myself. I want to keep doing it also because it is an intellecual game and in the
process of improvement, you'll learn something. You may get over your weak points. I want to reach the top of the world.


Photo?Kenji Iiyama
Cooperation?T WALL TOKYO