Up until now, Alex Rohr's performance curve has only known one direction: steeply upwards. But even someone as successful as he is must learn to deal with defeats. The documentary film Project Breakthrough shows how the Swiss climber deals with performance plateaus and in the process gets to know himself anew as a person.
Alex tube has a scientific approach to climbing, achieving top-level performances thanks to his talent and an almost obsessive attention to detail that leads him to train at the local climbing gym for up to six hours a day after work.
Although he only started climbing at the age of 17, he managed to climb an 8a after just six months and scored his first 8b+ less than a year later.
In the first years of his career, Alex improved continuously and climbed increasingly higher grades of difficulty up to 9a ("Jungle Speed", 2018). But even someone who is so successful sometimes has to deal with plateaus.
In order to be able to push himself to the limit again, Alex has to exchange his role as an athlete for his role as a human being. He has to go the other way, get to know himself better, face his insecurities and find the perfect balance between calmness and anger, between concentration and determination.
Project Breakthrough is a personal documentary and inspiration for anyone who is experiencing their own plateau. To make progress, we must first appreciate the process that leads to it: failure.
That might interest you
- Alex Rohr climbs La Castagne (9a +) in St. Léger
- Alex Rohr manages the first ascent of Oblivion (9a) in Gimmelwald
- Alex Rohr successfully climbed in Flatanger: Change P1 (9a+/b).
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Credits: Cover picture @johnthornton_photography