Janja Garnbret, of Slovenia, climbs during the lead qualification portion of the women’s sport climbing competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
Adam Ondra, of the Czech Republic, looses his grip and falls as he nears the top during the lead qualification portion of the men’s sport climbing competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
TOKYO (AP) — Basketball, baseball, tennis — the list goes on and on of Olympic sports nearly everyone has at least tried before. Watch those athletes in Tokyo on the TV and somewhere in the back of your mind, it’s easy to think: I could probably do that.
Seeing sport climbers hang one-handed from their fingertips or upside down from one foot wedged into a crevice ushers in a different kind of response: Yeah, no way I could do that.
Sport climbing has made its Olympic debut, giving the world a chance to see just how physically demanding it can be. A mix of speed, strength and agility, the sport has opened a few eyes through two days of qualifying. It will become even more intense with the finals, starting with the men on Thursday.
So how did sport climbing get here, and what exactly is going on?
Climbing has been around since early man looked up at a rock wall and thought: Wonder what it would be like to climb that?
As with almost every other athletic endeavor, it turned into a competition.
Sport climbing first took hold in the 1980s on outdoor walls and moved inside late in the decade to avoid having a negative environmental impact. The first world championships were held a decade later and the International Federation of Sport Climbing was founded in 2007, providing the sport more structure.
