Para Climbing
Para Climbing is Sport Climbing for athletes with disabilities. Athletes are placed into a Sport Class based on their disability, to allow those with a disability of a similar nature to compete within the same category.
The IFSC has been hosting Para Climbing competitions since 2006, when the first international event saw athletes from four National Federations compete in Ekaterinburg, Russia. The movement has grown in recent years, with a regular circuit being added to the IFSC calendar from 2010 and IFSC Para Climbing World Championships taking place from July 2011. It has become tradition that the IFSC Para Climbing World Championships run alongside the IFSC Climbing World Championships, promoting athletes with disability on the same stage as other athletes. Proud of the rapid growth of the Para Climbing community, and of the increasing standard of competitions, the IFSC remains dedicated to developing and strengthening the competitions and support available to athletes.
In 2017, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) granted the IFSC the status of Recognised International Federation.
In October 2018, a plan was elaborated for developing the sport further. The plan was unanimously approved at the 2019 IFSC General Assembly in Tokyo, Japan, officially declaring the start of a new era for Para Climbing and its vibrant, committed, and enthusiastic community.
PARA CLIMBING ACHIEVEMENTS
| 2006 | The first international Para Climbing event was held in Ekaterinburg, Russia |
| 2011 | The first IFSC Para Climbing World Championships took place in Arco, Italy, with 35 athletes representing 11 different countries. |
| 2012 | The Para Climbing World Championships in Paris, France, saw 61 athletes from 20 different countries competing - almost doubling the number of athletes and country representation from the previous year. |
| 2013-2017 | Para Climbing World Cups and World Championships were held, with the latter taking place every even year and including up to 72 athletes from 20 different countries. The Para Climbing Commission made various modifications to the Para Climbing rules and event format. The classification system was expanded up to 10 theoretical categories for men and women to ensure a fair competition. In 2017, the International Paralympic Committee granted the IFSC the status of Recognised International Federation. |
| 2018 | The Para Climbing World Championships in Innsbruck, Austria, had a new record participant number, with 126 athletes participating from 19 different countries. |
| 2019 | The Para Climbing World Championships in Briançon, France, set new records, with 158 athletes – 111 men and 47 women – representing 24 different countries participating in the event. The IFSC General Assembly unanimously approved a Para Climbing development plan in March 2019, with one step of the plan being to form a new Para Climbing Commission. The first Para Climbing Routesetting Seminar was held in Sittard, Netherlands, in November 2019. |
| 2020 | The Para Climbing Routesetting Guidelines were created and published by the IFSC Para Climbing Committee. Due to COVID-19 many Para Climbing activities such as the Para Climbing Classifiers' Course and the first classification under the lead of IPC experts were postponed. |
| 2023 | At the IFSC Para Climbing World Championships in Bern, Switzerland, a prize money was allocated for the event. |
| 2024 | LA28 proposes Para Climbing for the 2028 Paralympic Sport Programme. On 26 June, IPC announces that Para Climbing will be officially in the programme of Paralympic Games 2028 |
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