Glancing Back and Looking Ahead
Heyo rock climbing… Happy New Year! This is the time when one is supposed to wipe the slate clean and layout a new list of optimistic goals for the coming months; train harder, cut down on the post-climbing brews, finally take that trip to Font that you’ve been yammering about… Failing in all that, you should at least be over your hangover by now. It’s no different here at the UBC; a new year brings with it a new list of goals to meet and challenges to overcome. But to fully appreciate where we are and what opportunities lay ahead, we’re going to take a look back on the past 12 months because honestly, they were pretty wild ride.
Overall 2011 was a crazy year of the highest highs and the lowest lows ever the UBC Pro Tour. Luckily, in the main, we dealt more with the former than with the latter; On the great side of things… there was the formal partnership with USA Climbing, we held the first ever ABS National Championships outside a gym and broadcast live online, the landmark EMS Pro competition in Central Park brought climbing to the largest audience ever on the UBC Pro Tour, followed almost immediately by the announcement that climbing was short-listed for the 2020 Olympics Games, extended media coverage (UBC in the New York Times, OMG!), exposure to tens of thousands of new fans, and of course– phenomenal performances by all of the UBC athletes both on plastic and on rock. The future of climbing is very bright indeed. And on the not so great side of things…
…We also learned that there is still plenty of work to be done in convincing our industry of the value of professional competition climbing as a mechanism for growth of the sport. Look no further than the cancellation of the staple UBC comp at the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market trade show back in August for evidence of that. The need to cancel our first event ever was a blow to us and an indicator that much of our industry lacks either the ability or the vision required to support and sustain a climbing pro tour at the level necessary to produce professional-scale events. It is our sincere hope that they do not lack both. And the 2012 UBC Pro Tour season, with the most important future market for the sport in NYC and an Olympic bid on the line as rewards for success, will be a litmus test for whether the climbing industry believes that putting our best athletes on display in those huge potential markets for climbing is the right way to invest in our sport or whether they have other ideas for how best to support the current and future best of the best.
So 2011 leaves us with a year of data to sift through, analyze and learn to better our performances from. Climbing is once again on the cusp of breaking into new territories and in the years that we have worked to build a sustainable climbing pro tour from scratch, there has rarely been a dull moment and never one that we couldn’t learn from. Over the next two weeks we’ll review some of key events of the 2011 UBC Pro Tour and look ahead to see what’s in store for 2012.
Part I: USA Climbing Partnership and the Olympics
photo: Andy Mann
On January 12th, 2011 the Board of Directors for USA Climbing, the national governing body of the sport, unanimously voted to partner with the UBC Pro Tour and sanctioned it as the official pro tour of the U.S. “Establishing an official pro tour was, in our minds, the first step to unifying the climbing community and creating a platform for everyone to contribute and have a hand in the growth our sport.” said UBC Pro Tour Director Pete Ward. “It also creates a clear path for young climbers to progress through the sport and onto the highest levels of competition. Hopefully someday soon a young kid can walk into a gym, get psyched on climbing, join the local gym’s team, compete through the levels of USAC events then compete at the pro level on the UBC Pro Tour and, this is the someday part, make the U.S. Olympic Climbing Team. This partnership puts that structure for progress in place which is just awesome to be a part of.”
That structure is coming together and one of the biggest pieces left to fall is, of course, getting the sport into the Olympics, a decision well outside of the control of anyone in the climbing community and likely subject to international whims that we are just barely beginning to understand. However, on July 4th, 2011 we got our first bit of very good news when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced the sports that are being short-listed for consideration in the 2020 Olympic Games and climbing was among them! What does that mean? It means that climbing is up against sports like baseball, karate, roller sports, softball, squash, wake-boarding and wushu and has the chance to be selected. According to the Olympic Programme Commission, all sports up for consideration will be judged on the following criteria: History and Tradition, Universality, Popularity, Image, Athlete Health, Costs, and Development of the International Federation. While climbing certainly has its share of tradition and universal appeal, the sport still needs to make progress in all these areas and competition climbing in the UBC Pro Tour represents our single best tool for accomplishing those goals. With the unified support of industry, athletes and fans, professional competition climbing can help communicate tradition, showcase the sport’s universal appeal, grow the audience, and build the image and infrastructure needed to be an Olympic sport.
In 2012, the UBC Pro Tour will continue to work with USA Climbing to capitalize on the opportunities in front of us while at the same time building a sustainable future of growth for our sport. What can you do to support climbing’s growth and its Olympic bid? SUPPORT COMPETITION CLIMBING! Industry: Competition is the future of our sport and the best way to support athletes and their professional development. Support the UBC and USAC. If you wish to grow climbing, competition is the way to do it. Just don’t expect that you can throw a few thousand dollars in the pot and say you did your part. This is going to be expensive and it’s going to take time. Get psyched, ask questions if you don’t understand and live up to your obligation to support the best and brightest in our game. Athletes: Compete! Everyone wants to see the best of the best so take this opportunity to prove yourself. Fans: Tune in or come to the comps, support the brands and get behind your favorite athletes, have your kid’s birthday party at your local gym and inspire a future climbing star! We ALL have a hand in the future of our sport.
Next: USA Climbing Partnership and ABS Nationals
