THE HARD WAY UP

CLIMBING.....Britain's James Pearson climbing the multi-pitch peak of Mount Kinabalu.

By : NURHAFIZAH YUSOF

MOUNT Kinabalu, Malaysia’s tallest at 4,095 metres (13,435 feet), is arguably the easiest mountain to climb. Eighty-year-old grandmas and very young children have walked up to the granite peak. Yet it has attracted some of the world’s best runners among the 600 to its toughest mountain race every year. Now it offers some of the most challenging routes to rock climbers.

Five of the world’s top rock climbers spent two weeks on the Sabah mountain last month to chart 24 routes for rock climbers. They are graded from 5 to 9A in climbing difficulty with 9A being the most difficult.

And it is the difficulty of the climb that excites rock climbers.

“We would find the hardest possible way to climb,” said Caroline Ciavaldini, 27, who won last year’s world cup at Chamonix in the French Alps. “Mountaineers will seek the easiest way up the mountain.”

That in essence separates the rock climber from the mountaineer.

PROUD....From left, Daniel Wood, James Pearson, Caroline Ciavaldini and Yuji Hirayama.

Ciavaldini of France was joined by three other champions: America’s Daniel Woods, 23, Britain’s James Pearson, 26, and Japan’s Yuji Hirayama, 43.

All of them are bowled over by the granite peak which they say is the dream of every climber.

Despite its height, it doesn’t have a snow cap and “it’s just perfect for climbers,” said Yuji, who has won many championships and broke the world record for speed climbing at El Capitan The Nose in Yosemite, America, in 2008.

Ciavaldini described it as '5-star granite'. “You can’t find it elsewhere,” she said. “It’s so amazing and it inspires us to climb. I’ve never seen such a good granite rock before.”

But strong wind, rain and the high altitude posed problems for them. They found it difficult to breath at 4,000 metres where their climb started at Sayat Sayat. The rain and humidity made the rock slippery and they had to make sure that they were not blown off by the wind.

At one point, Yuji fell 9m but was saved by a harness he had on. This was his fourth climb of the mountain.

Yet all of them have found Mount Kinabalu to be safe. “There are no snakes or scorpions,” said Ciavaldini.

The Sabah Tourism Board hopes to promote rock climbing on Mount Kinabalu as another tourist attraction. (Insight Sabah)