UIAA Ice Climbing Eyes 2022 Beijing Olympics

One of the ultimate goals of the UIAA Ice Climbing World Cup organizers is to bring the sport into the official competition programme of the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing, China.

The UIAA has been recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) since 1995 and has organised the sport of ice climbing since 2002. The first steps taken on route to 2022 were made in 2014 in Sochi, Russia.

There, ice climbing was presented to the public and Olympic community at the Olympic Park during the Winter Olympic Games.

This was followed in 2016 by the appearance of ice climbing as part of the non-competition programme at the Winter Youth Olympic Games held in Lillehammer in February, 2016.

The next goal is for ice climbing to be showcased ahead of the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympic Winter Games at a Word Cup event in Cheongsong in South Korea, the host country of the Games.

These valuable opportunities have enabled ice climbing to be showcased in front of the Olympic family and to the wider public.

“We have organised the UIAA Ice Climbing World Tour for 15 years and in that time have witnessed the incredible growth in popularity of the sport throughout the world,” explains UIAA President Frits Vrijlandt.

“Ice climbing is a dynamic sport, combining determination, technique, speed, precision and excitement. The sport is increasingly appealing to young people, evident by the number of international climbers who take part in our World Youth Championships.”

Ice climbing combines the allure of the winter sport environment with fast-paced action, intelligence and determination.

In the lead discipline, ice climbers require great technique, tactical mastery and nerves of steel in executing complex moves in seemingly improbable positions.

The speed discipline is almost a vertical take on the 100-metre sprint in athletics. Its about raw power, core strength and aggression.