- NEW YORK -- Scott
Cory sounds just like an ordinary 13-year-old kid. His accent is pure southern
Californian and his favoured description of pretty much anything is simple:
'cool'.
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- Yet Scott is a genius. He is the 'wunderkind' of the
climbing world, who as a teenager has already mastered some of the planet's
toughest climbs. Many expect him one day to be hailed as the world's greatest
natural rock climber in a sport for the superfit and very brave. Not that
that bothers Scott. 'It is really fun. It's cool,' he told The Observer.
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- Scott is one of a number of ever younger athletes in
the United States. They include a six-year-old weightlifter and a 14-year-old
football professional. They have raised worries about the welfare of youngsters
thrust into the limelight at a tender age.
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- Scott already holds numerous records, including being
the youngest climber to scale the peaks of Half Dome and El Capitan in
Yosemite National Park: among the most famous 'big wall' climbs in the
world. The ascent on Half Dome usually takes top adult climbers three days.
Scott did it in one.
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- Now he is planning a charity climb of both peaks within
24 hours. He will climb a total of 4,900 feet of rock - almost four times
the height of the Empire State Building.
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- Scott got his first commercial endorsement deal at the
age of eight. Now, among many other sponsors, North Face pays for him to
travel to climb and supplies him with its equipment. Despite going to school
every day, he is already a professional athlete in one of the world's most
dangerous sports.
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- Tyanna Madsen, aged six, created a storm this month when
she deadlifted 45 kilogrammes in a competition. She became involved in
the sport at three.
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- Despite health experts - including the American Pediatric
Association - warning that children lifting weights can put their health
at risk, Tyanna's achievements, which could put her in the Guinness Book
of Records, have caused a media frenzy second only to that surrounding
14-year-old soccer player Freddy Adu. Last week the boy became the youngest
professional in a top-level American sport for more than 100 years.
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- Freddy, whose parents are from Ghana, will play with
professional Washington football team DC United next season.
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- 'We wanted to allow him to pursue his dreams and develop
his God-given talents. As he makes this next step at the age of 14, it
was best for him to stay in America,' said Freddy's mother, Emelia. Offers
from European clubs, including Manchester United, had been rejected, she
said. Media pundits compare Freddy's talent to that of Brazilian genius
Pele.
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- Scott's parents want their son to keep studying and to
see a possible future outside climbing.
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- 'He has a brother and a sister who keep him down to earth
real easy. They tell him all the time how useless he is,' joked his proud
father Jim.
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- Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited
2003
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- http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,6903,1091355,00.html
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