World Climbing is the international governing body for Climbing. It was founded on 27 January 2007 as a continuation of the International Council for Competition Climbing, which was created 10 years earlier, in 1997. From 2007 until December 2025, it was officially known as the International Federation of Sport Climbing. As a non-profit organisation, World Climbing’s objectives are to direct, regulate, promote, and develop Climbing competitions worldwide.

After its first appearance at Tokyo 2020, Climbing successfully returned to the Olympic stage at Paris 2024, where 68 athletes from 22 nations competed over six sold-out days of competition. In February 2022, the International Olympic Committee approved the inclusion of Climbing in the initial programme of the Olympic Games LA28. In June 2024, the International Paralympic Committee ratified the inclusion of Para Climbing in the Paralympic Games LA28. In 2018, two Climbing medal events were held at the Youth Olympic Games Buenos Aires 2018.

On 12 April 2025, the General Assembly elected the current Executive Board: President Marco Scolaris; Vice Presidents Naomi Cleary, Kobinata Toru, Anne-Worley Moelter, and Pierre You; and Continental Board Members Burgi Beste, Stephane David, Li Guowei, Chris Naudé, and René Sepulveda. The Executive Board also includes the President and Vice President of the Athletes Commission.

World Climbing

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