Long Beach Will Be Home of Climbing at 2028 LA Olympics

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) just announced that the world-famous Long Beach area of Los Angeles will be the venue for boulder, lead, and speed climbing at the 2028 LA Summer Olympic Games. The Convention Center Lot will house climbing at the Games, with the IOC saying the Long Beach venue offers “stunning views, framing the temporary climbing wall with the nearby Pacific Ocean as an iconic backdrop.”

Other sports will also share the Convention Center Lot location, including artistic swimming and water polo in temporary venues. This venue announcement follows the huge news that the sport of climbing will have an three sets of medals for men and women at the 2028 Games.

In Tokyo, climbing’s first appearence at the Olympics, there was only one climbing event, with speed, lead, and boulder combined into a single event. In Paris, they separated climbing into two discipines – Speed and Boulder & Lead Combined, each with their own set of medals. LA will feature a set of medals for each gender category in speed, lead, and boulder. This is thrilling news for comp climbing fans. Fingers crossed for a fourth medal category – Boulder & Lead Combined – at the 2032 Summer Olympics.

The LA Games will also feature an increased athlete quote for climbing. In Paris, 68 climbers (34 men and 34 women) competed in the Games. This number bumps up to 76 in LA, with 38 men and 38 women expected to compete.