The purpose of this study was to determine if a simple measurement using hand dynamometer could be used as predictors of boulder climbing performance in youth climbers. The study cohort consisted of 12 competitive climbers (8 males, 4 females) who competed at European Bouldering Youth Championships (B) in Slany, Czech Republic in the year 2017. The hand grip force was measured at fingertips-thumbtip grip at three wrist positions and during free holding. The effect of hand dominance in grip strength was not observed except for free holding. It could be concluded that the elite young climbers has balanced grip strength between the left and the right hand. The performance in competitions was assessed by total number of number of achieved tops. The best predictor of number of top holds achieved in qualification round was the strength at free grip as it describes also upper body fitness level.
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