Sport Climbing at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

At the session of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) assembly, which is taking place in Rio de Janeiro in the days before the opening of the XXXI Olympic Games, they decided on August 3, 2016, to include five new sports in the program of the Games in Tokyo in 2020, where sport climbing will also make its debut. Slovenia, with the long-term successes of our competitors, is a true sport climbing powerhouse, so the decision on the Olympic future of this sport has brought great joy, as well as some serious considerations. The day before, ski mountaineering competitions became a sport recognized by the IOC, giving it the opportunity to appear at future Winter Olympic Games.



"We are delighted that sport climbing will participate in the Olympic Games in Tokyo," welcomed the IOC decision by Marco Scolaris, President of the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC). "The Olympic Games have been our dream for a long time, and our efforts have now been rewarded. We would like to thank the International Olympic Committee for this unique opportunity for our sport." Sport climbing was unanimously included in the program of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games; the decision for the subsequent period will be made later.



In September 2014, the IOC unanimously approved the Olympic Agenda 2020 project for the inclusion of new sports disciplines in the 2020 Olympic Games. After the International Federation of Sport Climbing and the Japanese Alpine Association presented their proposal last year, eight sports made it to the shortlist. In June, the IOC Executive Board also approved the proposal for five new sports, and the final decision was made at the 129th IOC assembly session in Rio de Janeiro. Today, all five sports – baseball/softball, karate, skateboarding, sport climbing, and surfing – have become part of the Olympic family.



Sport climbing embodies the fundamental values of the Olympic movement – it is exciting, healthy, affordable, and widespread on all continents. Women and youth are well represented in the sport, as are people with special needs. Its popularity is growing, and many leading athletes come from Japan, the host of the 2020 OG. Slovenia is also a powerhouse with the long-term successes of Slovenian sport climbers, so the decision on the Olympic future of sport climbing has brought great joy, as well as some serious considerations.



"The Olympic Committee of Slovenia is very pleased with this news and congratulates the Alpine Association of Slovenia for joining the family of Olympic sports disciplines. The decision is important for Slovenian sport because we are very successful in sport climbing and thus increase our chances for Slovenian medals at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, while at the same time it is a great incentive and achievement for the sport itself, as it has gained significantly greater opportunities for further development," said Edvard Kolar, General Secretary of the Olympic Committee – Association of Sports Federations.



"The inclusion of sport climbing in the Olympic program means a great opportunity for our climbers to prove their quality also at the greatest sports event. The Alpine Association of Slovenia thereby bears even greater care and responsibility for annually ensuring material and personnel conditions for the operation of its national teams. With the inclusion of climbing in the class of Olympic sports, we expect greater financial investments from sponsors and public sources, which will enable competitors the best possible conditions for the four-year Olympic preparation cycle. As soon as possible, we must start planned preparations in Slovenia also in the speed discipline, which will be one of the three Olympic events. We have not cultivated this discipline at the highest level in Slovenia until now. World competition will certainly increase now, as especially Asian countries will start investing much more in this sport. Participation in Tokyo will be allowed only for a handful of the world's best, among whom, I hope, there will be at least two Slovenian representatives. Given the top results of our climbers in recent years and strong potential, we can count on an Olympic medal in four years," predicts Aleš Pirc, Head of the Sport Climbing Commission of the Alpine Association of Slovenia.



Tomo Česen, who has contributed in all ways to the development of sport climbing in Slovenia and is a long-time organizer of the World Cup lead competition in Kranj, whose last 20th edition was also attended by IOC representatives, said: "Some time ago, I stated that sport climbing deserves a place at the Olympic Games. Therefore, I am happy about this IOC decision. What all will change in sport climbing due to this decision is still too early to determine at this moment. In any case, I hope that our sport will remain as we have known it until now. To make this happen, the federations in countries around the world and the umbrella international federation IFSC are largely responsible."



Selector and coach of the Slovenian sport climbing national team Gorazd Hren predicts: "Like for every athlete, it is of course also the coach's wish to one day bring his charges or team to participate in the Olympic Games, so I warmly welcome the decision of the International Olympic Committee. We are happy to become part of the Olympic Games. It is true that the format – a combination of lead, bouldering, and speed – is not the most successful, but I accept the fact that it was not at the very beginning in other sports either. I believe that we will prove ourselves and that over time we will come to opportunities for medals in individual disciplines. As a national team, we will happily prepare for the Olympic year and proudly represent the colors of Slovenia."



Mina Markovič, European champion, world runner-up, and three-time overall World Cup winner in lead climbing, accompanied the decision with the following words: "Sport climbing, as a very rapidly developing and popular sport, certainly deserves a place among Olympic sports. Competitions are well organized, interesting, and understandable even for non-experts, results are nicely measurable, the sport is present on all continents. We have a strong and stable international federation for competitions and further development of this sport. The Olympic future will enable it good development and both general and media recognition. The only pity is that for now, only the combination of all three competition disciplines (lead, bouldering, and speed), which are quite different from each other and each requiring specialization, has been accepted into the Olympic center. Such a competition system will reflect the most versatile climber, but the question is how top in just one of these disciplines. In any case, however, a huge and very welcome acquisition for sport climbing, which certainly deserves a place among Olympic sports!"



European runner-up in lead and world and European youth champion in lead and bouldering Janja Garnbret, unbeaten this year in the World Cup lead at the tender age of 17, can look forward to participating in the Tokyo 2020 OG: "Participation in the Olympic Games is the dream of every athlete. With passionate dedication, we invest enormous effort to achieve the best possible results at competitions where everyone respects opponents. Participation in the Olympic Games with good results would be the peak of our efforts and the fulfillment of my ambitions and wishes. Competing at world championships is a great pleasure and honor for me, but the opportunity to participate in the OG comes only once or twice in a career. Since sport climbing has become an Olympic sport, it will gain great prestige and respect. However, I must admit that I do not like the format in which it was accepted, which means they will award only one set of medals. For me personally, speed climbing does not represent a climbing challenge, as competitors always climb the same route, on the same incline; the charm of climbing is not in speed. If they want to make a combination, let it be bouldering and lead climbing, as these are the forms that best describe climbing, so I think they must think well about this format and perfect it before implementation at the Olympic Games."



Domen Škofic, the most successful Slovenian representative with three World Cup wins in lead, also reflects on the adapted sport climbing format with the Olympic promise: "Like every athlete, I also want to one day compete at the Olympic Games. When I think that there is a great possibility that this will happen already in four years in Tokyo, I become very excited. Sport climbing as an Olympic discipline will finally gain the value and recognition it more than deserves. Top athletes will finally be able to fully devote ourselves to our passion and actually live from it. It sounds dreamy, but not everything is as positive as it seems. Climbing is supposed to join the Olympic sports in the form of a combination of all three disciplines, which means a drastic change in the sport as we know it. Speed climbing has drastically changed in recent years. Due to the same incline, same holds, and same moves, in my opinion, it has become more like athletics than climbing. The charm of climbing is that there is always something new, that you have to think and use all possible moves to solve puzzles on the wall. I believe that climbing should come to the games as a combination of lead and bouldering, as they are the purest and most basic forms of climbing! What good does it do us to get to the Olympic Games if the sport will be completely different from what we know? In any case, I will enjoy climbing exactly the same as if it did not become an Olympic sport."



Under the auspices of the Alpine Association of Slovenia or its Mountain Sports Commission, the Slovenian national team in ski mountaineering competitions also operates, which was delighted on August 2 by the news that ski mountaineering competitions have become a sport recognized by the IOC, giving it the opportunity to appear at future Winter Olympic Games. "The International Ski Mountaineering Federation (ISMF) with so-called full recognition is one step closer to the Winter Olympic Games. This is simultaneously recognition of both the ISMF organization and the sport itself and the athletes. We keep our fingers crossed that we will see ski mountaineering at the Winter Olympic Games as early as 2022. There is even more hope also because ISMF is currently the only federation in the group of winter sports whose sports discipline is not yet part of the Winter Olympic Games," welcomed the decision by coach and selector Iztok Cukjati. The question is whether the currently most successful Slovenian ski mountaineer Nejc Kuhar will still be competing then, but he was very pleased with the decision, "as ski mountaineering will become more recognizable, especially for young people, who are lacking in our ranks, and it can also be a great incentive to engage in this sport with the goal of participating in the Olympic Games."