High prestige, more climbing

The IFSC Climbing and Paraclimbing World Championships take place biannually and showcase the most elite sport climbing athletes from across the globe. This year, the event will be the longest ever with the addition of the Combined finals on the last day. After 9 days of climbing, the six top-scoring men and women will face-off in a thrilling grand finale of Bouldering, Lead and Speed climbing. "The schedule has been designed so that the athletes have rest days in between the disciplines. In the past, this wasn't considered vital because the Combined discipline didn't have the prestige that it has today. For the spectators, the schedule is highly attractive because the medal decisions all take place during the evening and mostly on the weekends," says Michael Schöpf, CEO of the event.

Maximum endurance, strength and speed

The first medals in the individual disciplines will be decided in Lead, with the finals scheduled to take place during the first week on September 8-9. The athletes will test their endurance by trying to reach the top of the towering walls of Kletterzentrum Innsbruck, displayed at the IFSC Youth World Championships in Innsbruck last year, and Olympiaworld Innsbruck. The remaining disciplines are scheduled to take place throughout the following week. Athletes will race up the two-lane Speed wall as fast as possible in the knockout finals on September 13, when the first medals in Paraclimbing will also be determined. The next finals take place on September 14-15, after more skilled and strong climbing from top-tier athletes on world-class Bouldering problems and Paraclimbing routes.

World premiere of Austrian Paraclimbing team

Paraclimbing has been featured at the IFSC World Championships since 2011, and this year up to 12 categories will be represented. In the spotlight will be the Austrian Paraclimbing team, making their debut on the world stage in front of their home crowd in Innsbruck. The team is coached by star sport climbing athlete Katharina Saurwein and have been preparing for the event for nearly two years. "Adequately conveying the great contribution of Paraclimbing to the IFSC World Championships atmosphere requires more than words. The efforts are rewarded by an unforgettable show that must be experienced," says IFSC President Marco Scolaris. "We can't wait to be in Innsbruck once again, for such a major event, after the fantastic Youth World Championships last year. Tyrol has been a natural destination for sport climbing for years, a place where, quoting former IOC President Jacques Rogge: "Everybody climbs!""

Visit the Innsbruck website for more information: www.innsbruck2018.com