EP 295: Sam Watson
March 23, 2026
Sam Watson is the current world record holder in speed climbing (4.64 seconds) and an Olympic Bronze medalist. We talked about breaking the world record in Paris, how he makes a living, building a social media following in China, the future potential of speed climbing, recovery routines and tools, chess, favorite books, airport stoicism, and more.
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Show Notes:
Related Episodes:
References:
Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu
With Winning in Mind by Lanny Bassham
Sam’s Links:
Nuggets:
00:00:00 – Intro
00:01:38 – Winter Olympics
00:05:48 – Breaking the World Record in Paris
00:14:20 – Winning Bronze in Paris
00:25:50 – LA Olympics
00:30:11 – How Sam makes a living
00:34:49 – Building a following in China
00:38:40 – Different speed formats
00:42:38 – Pro Climbing League
00:51:15 – Sam’s intro to speed climbing
01:12:35 – Sam’s future career arc
01:20:48 – Recovery routines & tools
01:24:15 – Journaling & Chris Sharma
01:29:31 – The culture of speed climbing
01:32:08 – The potential of speed
01:38:43 – Speed Classic
01:40:42 – Sam’s potential & the 0.1 rule
01:46:03 – Sub 6 for the women
01:47:33 – Hobbies & books
01:51:23 – Sam’s upcoming goals
01:52:08 – Airport stoicism
01:53:34 – Where to find Sam