CLASSIFICATION OF METHODS OF CLIMBING WITH A FIXED ROPE IN THE PRACTICE OF SPORT MOUNTAIN TOURISM COMPETITIONS

Abstract

The materials presented in this article continue a line of studies devoted to the theoretical substantiation and development of a classification system for methods of an athlete’s ascent on a fixed top-anchored rope. The first part of this research was published in the article “Analysis of an Athlete’s Ascent on a Fixed Rope in the Practice of Mountain Tourism.” The practical significance of this work stems from the lack of a clear and well-developed classification system for rope-ascent techniques. Implementing a classification system that encompasses all ascent methods previously identified as theoretically possible for vertical rope climbing enables the substantial reduction of the likelihood of incurring additional penalty points associated with unintentional tactical violations during performance on a course. The primary aim of the study is to justify assigning a given ascent method to a specific group within the proposed classification. The selected assessment criteria enable an unambiguous determination of the group membership of a particular method based on its mode of execution; moreover, these criteria can be applied to all existing methods of ascent on a fixed rope. For the practical solution of the stated task, the article proposes, as the principal evaluative criterion, the manner in which the main propulsive forces are generated during a previously defined single cycle of the athlete’s ascent. As in the earlier published part of the study, the technique is evaluated using two core criteria: the method of generating the “primary ascent force” and the method of generating the “primary force with movement blocking.”Based on the theoretical findings obtained in the course of the reported research, a working version of a classification system for ascent methods is proposed. The system is grounded in the physical manner in which the principal forces are produced. The classification developed in the article demonstrates practical usability, encompasses all theoretically possible rope-ascent methods employing two progress-capture devices, and allows the research objectives articulated in the study to be successfully achieved.