ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Another Michigan athlete will represent Team USA at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games this summer.
Zachary Hammer, 18, of Ann Arbor, qualified for the games at the Speed Finals Olympic Qualifier Series Budapest last weekend.
Hammer secured his sixth-place finish in the series with a time of 5.15 seconds in the final race.
“It’s been a long journey and I’m super proud of myself,” said Hammer, with his ticket to Paris in hand. “I want to thank all my coaches and my family. They’re all here to support me and celebrate and I couldn’t do it without them. This means so much!”
Sport Climbing, which is made up of three separate disciplines of speed, bouldering and lead, will make its second Olympics appearance in August.
For the 2024 Olympics, the speed discipline will be a standalone event, but bouldering and lead will remain combined into one event.
Speed Climbing is a competition where climbers must scale the nearly 50-foot wall as quickly as possible. During the competition, there are two parallel speed walls that are next to each other with identical holds and heights.
At the top of each lane is a touchpad that each climber must hit to stop the clock. All results are based on times, and each race is contested within 10 seconds.
The games begin Friday, July 26 and end Aug. 11.
The Sport Climbing portion of the games begins Aug. 5 and runs through Aug. 10.
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