Generally speaking, a climber’s main points of contact with the wall are their hands and feet. To train their hands, they actively work on grip and finger strength, using chalk to dry the sweat on their palms and increase friction. On their feet, they wear specialized climbing shoes with sticky rubber. But there are hundreds of climbing shoe models, and Olympic athletes—who can’t afford a single foot slip in the Lead and Speed events, where a fall disqualifies you immediately—are very particular about which ones they use.
Climbing shoes have evolved light years in the four decades since the Spanish shoemaker Firé first used soft, sticky butyl rubber on the soles of their climbing boots. Today, there are hundreds of climbing shoes on the market, some of which were specifically designed for artificial walls like the ones at Paris, which means that even sponsored athletes have options within their sponsors’ product lines. In Paris, the 68 competitors will select their footwear based not only on the event—Bouldering & Lead Combined; Speed—but also the terrain and types of sequences they anticipate doing. (The Speed wall does not change—it’s the same route every time. But the lead route and boulder problems change in each round; the climbers are given six minutes to scope out the semifinals and finals lead routes, and eight minutes to scope out the four finals boulders.)
Here is a breakdown of 11 common climbing shoes we’ll be seeing at the Olympics, by event, and why they’re a popular choice. Note that “bouldering” shoes might be used as “lead” shoes, and vice versa; in reality, most high-performance shoes will excel at both disciplines.
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Modern competition bouldering centers on flamboyant parkour and coordination moves to large features like volumes and macros, but there’s also an emphasis on delicate slabs with microscopic jibs and slopers, as well as powerful overhangs. To meet these varied needs, competitors will pick shoes that tend toward softness and sensitivity—versus a stiffer shoe for edging—and have some downturn (“swoop”) for steeps, with ample rubber covering the heel and forefoot for technical moves like heel hooks and toe hooks.
This soft, single-strap-closure slipper is known for its sensitivity and flex. It also has a large toe-hooking patch. The shoe is designed for competition climbing and excels on its coordination moves. The Zenist Pro, U.S. climber Colin Duffy’s go-to, features more scumming rubber and a stiffer, more built-up last, which supports the foot for slab moves.
$219 at Backcountry (Zenit Pro)
The Hiangle has a crisp, pointy toe for edging and precision but big flex across the body for smearing on volumes and grabbing on steeps. It’s the go-to shoe for Janja Garnbret, the 2021 Tokyo gold medalist and most decorated female competition climber of all time, but it’s also a favorite for the outdoor boulderer Will Bosi, who used them on the second ascent of the world’s first V17, Burden of Dreams. The Pro version, favored by the outstanding British upstart Toby Roberts, amps up the downturn and the toe-hook rubber, and is more of an indoor-specific shoe than the OG model. Read our review of the Hiangle (it won our 2020 Editor’s Choice Award) and our review of the Highangle Pro.
$170 at Backcountry (Hiangle Pro)
This flexible, highly specialized, rubber-coated shoe, designed by the world’s best rock climber, Adam Ondra, was built for “smedging” (smear-edging, or deforming the shoe into small edge holds by standing frontally on the tip of the big toe versus edging laterally on the toe’s inside). Look for these futuristic indoor shoes on Ondra’s feet during the bouldering rounds in Paris. Check out our review of the Ondra Comp.
The Ondra Comp is not currently available for sale online.
Jesse Grupper (USA), one of the few people to have flashed an outdoor route graded 5.14c—having done so twice!—likes these double-strap-closure, high-end all-arounders for competition wear. The shoes are meant to marry comfort with performance, meaning they can easily be left on between attempts, saving precious seconds in the bouldering rounds. Grupper also like the Bullit and the Sigma.
One recent analysis, of the 2024 IFSC Bouldering World Cup in Keqiao, China, found that the Drago was the most popular shoe among Scarpa athletes—with seven of the eight present Scarpa climbers wearing them. These bouldering slippers are squishy, lightweight, forefoot focused, and downturned, with a marked asymmetrical curvature that lets them “hook” around volumes and arêtes. You can expect the Drago and Drago LV to be some of the most popular climbing shoes at the Olympics. Check out our review of the Drago and our review of the Drago LV.
$218.95 at Backcountry (Drago)
$218.95 at Backcountry (Drago LV)
The Japanese legend Tomoa Narasaki designed and climbs in these futuristic high-rise slippers, which have an aggressive downturn for steep terrain and a rounded toe that gives you a margin for error on the sorts of dynamic foot placements forced by parkour-style moves.
$165.80 at Backcountry (TN Pro)
$165.80 at Backcountry (TN Pro Low Volume)
Lead competitors face minor edging and dynamic moves off tiny jib feet, but they also need to stand on sloping volumes and macro features. To deal with this variety, most athletes will opt for semi-stiff shoes. Modern lead routes also incorporate technical kneescums and powerful undercling sequences, both of which drive significant weight through the feet and might feel unstable in a squishier, bouldering-focused boot.
Out since 2007, the Solution still feels futuristic: it was an early majorly built-up, multi-component, multi-layered shoe, and remains known for its stiff, bulbous heel, which can be employed as a secret weapon on aggressive heel hooks—like those found on Olympic climbs. This technical shoe also excels at everything else—edging, smearing, smedging, scumming—which is why they’re the shoe of choice for Austrian Jakob Schubert, who has worn them on V15s, a 5.15d, and during literally dozens of World Cup victories. Look for Brooke Raboutou (USA) to be wearing the women’s version. You’re also likely to see numerous competitors in the Solution Comp—one of Adam Ondra’s go-to Lead shoes. Check out our review of the Women’s Solution and of the softer Solution Comp.
$149.25 at Backcountry (Men’s)
$149.25 at Backcountry (Women’s)
These Velcro members of the Italian shoemaker’s Instinct quiver are known for marrying an intuitive fit with sensitivity and edging bite. Like the Solution, they are one of the most versatile high-end shoes, making them a popular Olympic climbing shoe choice for the varied terrain found on the long, punishing Lead routes. (The lead walls are 45 feet tall, but climbers cover much more distance since the walls are so overhanging.) Check out our review of the Instinct VSR (which won the Climbing’s 2017 Editor’s Choice Award) in Our Favorite Sport Climbing Shoes and the Instinct VS in Our Favorite Bouldering Shoes.
$208.95 at Backcountry (Instinct VSR)
$208.95 at Backcountry (Instinct VS)
$208.95 at Backcountry (Women’s Instinct VS)
The German beast Alex Megos does all his indoor (and much of his outdoor) climbing in either the Indalo, a semi-stiff technical shoe whose precise toe works well on micro edges, or the Iati, a similar boot. Tenaya, a Spanish shoemaker, tends to focus on versatility in their shoes—so, like the Scarpa Instinct and La Sportiva Solution, the Iati is a mildly downturned jack-of-all-trades. Check out our review of the Iati here.
The speed wall doesn’t rely on precision footwork—far from it. The competitors are moving so quickly they sometimes “run” up the wall itself, smearing on the surface between the red blob holds. Olympic speed climbers mainly just want a climbing shoe that’s light on the feet and springy enough in the toe to propel them upward.
Given that Sam Watson (USA), who will be competing in Paris, set the current world record of 4.798 seconds climbing in the Defy, these low-key but supportive all-arounders clearly have major street cred on the speed wall.
The first shoe on the market specifically designed for speed climbing, these stripped-down slippers have a springy toe for pushing into the holds. But they also have a heat-sealed thermoplastic polyurethane toe-cap coating to reduce friction as competitors slide their trailing foot up the wall. They’re by far the most popular speed climbing shoe and you can expect to see them highly represented in the Olympics. For more information about the Cobra 4:99, check out our writeup.
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