Support Sam and Tate at Collegiate Worlds

Hey y'all!

Our names are Sam Hsin and Tate Jennings. We are both competitive rock climbers studying at the University of Colorado Boulder. We grew up competing in the youth circuit for USA Climbing, and have had the opportunity over the last few years to transition to competing in both the Elite and Collegiate circuits.

In addition to competing while we were growing up, we both began to coach younger teams. This became an important part of our lives through high school and continues to be one of our highest priorities today. For the last three years, Sam has been coaching at the Spot climbing gym, and Tate has been coaching at the Spot as well for the last year. Sam has been coaching at the Spot for the past three years, and has had the chance to coach many of the athletes across several of the teams. Tate joined the Spot this past year and has worked primarily with the C/D elite team, as well as interacted with many of the other athletes at comps. We have greatly enjoyed the opportunity to contribute to the athletic and personal growth of many of these athletes during our time there! So we wanted to share a bit about why coaching has been so important to us over the years:

From Tate: "I was extremely dedicated to climbing throughout most of my childhood, and the people that I met during those years, especially my coaches, shaped the person I am today. I had several coaches who recognized my passion and were able to help me turn it into success. They were there for all of the highs and lows of my personal and climbing life, and they deeply changed the way that I view myself and the sport of climbing as a whole. I aspire to be able to help younger climbers in the same way, so that they have as positive of an experience as I have.

From Sam: "My coach in high school was one of the most influential people in my life at the time. I remember vividly the conversation we would have that still has an effect on me now. It was a pretty big contrast from the coaches I had in gymnastics when I was little, who were very focused on our success as opposed to our personal growth. This had a pretty drastic impact on what I valued in a coach, and formed my belief that a really good coach can make such a difference for youth athlete as they grow. At some point in the last few years, it became important to me to have the same effect on others that I wanted my coaches to have on me. The opportunity to invest in others' lives, in both their athletic growth and taking part in developing the kind of person they become is so valuable to me. This has driven every day of coaching I've had over the years."

One of the coolest parts about being a coach is being able to celebrate the successes of our athletes, and it's been even cooler to experience the psych our athletes have found in our accomplishments in return! Recently, both of us qualified for the 2024 collegiate world championships. Worlds has been a major goal for us both as athletes, and it was not easy to achieve by any means!

This year at collegiate nationals, the top 5 athletes (out of more than 100) from each gender in each discipline made the collegiate national team, which allows them to compete for the US at the FISU University World Games this September in Koper, Slovenia. Tate made the national team for both bouldering and lead this year! Sam made the lead national team, and will be able to celebrate graduating from college with an extended trip to Europe this fall!

Athletes from across the world will compete at this event, making it a rare opportunity for anyone in attendance. In addition, this event only takes place every other year. Since Sam is graduating and Tate will next year, this will be the last opportunity for them to attend this event during their time as undergraduates. Unfortunately, this experience will not be a cheap one! Between comp fees and accommodations, which cost $1400 per person, and flights, which can cost up to $1500 per person. That in addition to any food or other costs will make for a pretty expensive trip. If you feel called to support us in any way, it would be greatly appreciated! Even a very small donation would mean so much to us! We would love to catch up with anyone and chat about our upcoming opportunities in the next couple of months as well, so if you see us don't hesitate to say hi!

Best,

Tate and Sam