Sport climbing at the Summer Olympics

Lore & Background

Competition climbing was proposed for Olympic inclusion by the IFSC in 2015. In September 2015, it was shortlisted alongside baseball, softball, skateboarding, surfing, and karate for the 2020 Games. In June 2016, the IOC executive board supported including all shortlisted sports, and on August 3, 2016, all five sports were approved for the 2020 program.

At the 2020 Olympics, two combined events (men's and women's) merged speed, bouldering, and lead climbing into a single medal event. This format drew widespread criticism from the climbing community. The IFSC explained they were granted only one gold medal per gender and did not want to exclude speed climbing, aiming to establish all three disciplines as Olympic sports first.

For the 2024 Games, sport climbing expanded to separate boulder-and-lead and speed climbing events. Beginning at the 2028 Olympics, boulder and lead will be split into separate medal events. Route setters target lead climbs between 8c and 9a, and boulder problems between V10 and V14 for men and V9 and V12 for women, though exact grades are unknown due to insufficient testing.

Reader's Guide

Sport climbing's Olympic journey reflects a strategic compromise to gain a foothold in the Games. The initial combined format, criticized for forcing athletes to specialize across three distinct disciplines, was a deliberate choice by the IFSC to secure a single medal per gender while including speed climbing. This tactic succeeded, leading to expanded events in 2024 and separate medals for boulder and lead in 2028. The sport's inclusion has elevated its global profile, with Slovenia leading in gold medals and Austria, Japan, and the United States tying for most overall medals. The technical difficulty of Olympic routes—set at elite grades—underscores the high level of competition, though exact grades remain uncertain due to the inability to fully test routes. The evolution from a single combined event to multiple medal events mirrors the sport's growth and the IFSC's long-term strategy to showcase each discipline's unique demands.

Did You Know?

• Sport climbing was first selected as a discretionary sport for the 2020 and 2024 Games.
• At the 2020 Olympics, all three disciplines were contested as a single combined event.
• Slovenia has won the most gold medals in Olympic climbing, with two.
• Route setters target lead climbs between 8c and 9a for men's events, and around 7c+ to 8c+ for women's events.