Is Climbing a Sport? Yes, and Here’s the Proof

Ask ten climbers “is climbing a sport?” and you’ll get eleven answers. So let’s settle it. The dictionary defines a sport as an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.

Climbing is a sport. It takes serious physical exertion and skill, climbers compete against each other, and it’s shown on TV for entertainment. It ticks every box in that definition, and on top of all that, it debuted in the Olympics at Tokyo in 2021.

If you’re new to the climbing world, you might be wondering how climbing actually hits the four qualifications in that dictionary definition, so I’ve broken each one down below. That includes where the climbing in the famous documentary Free Solo fits in.

So, Is Climbing a Sport? Here’s the Quick Verdict

Yes. When people ask “is climbing a sport,” they’re usually really asking whether it’s a serious, competitive activity or just a fun hobby. It’s both, and that’s the point. Climbing clears all four parts of the definition at once: it’s physically exerting, it takes real skill, climbers compete individually and for their countries, and it’s watched by big audiences for entertainment. Here’s each qualification, one at a time. If you want the longer, deeper dive on the debate itself, we get into it over in is climbing considered a sport.

Qualification #1: Does Climbing Require Physical Exertion?

Yes, and there’s a number behind it. Scientific studies that make up the Metabolic Equivalent of Task (MET) value scale don’t just say climbing is physically exerting, they put it among the high-intensity workouts.

MET value is broken into three categories:

1. Low intensity (less than 3.0 on the MET scale), like sitting at your desk typing or watching TV
2. Moderate intensity (between 3.0 and 6.0 on the MET scale), like yard work and leisurely swimming laps
3. High intensity (greater than 6.0 on the MET scale), like running and calisthenics 

Climbing sits at 8.5 on the MET scale, which puts it firmly in the high-intensity bracket and means it’s been identified as requiring significant physical exertion.

Like any activity, easier climbs take less energy. Something like rappelling back down a route has been measured at 5.6 on the MET scale, which is moderate intensity. So just like most things, the harder you climb, the more physically exerting it gets. If you want the full picture on how hard climbing is on the body, we cover the numbers in 22 health benefits of climbing.

Qualification #2: Does Climbing Require Skill?

The harder the climb, the more skill it takes to finish it. Like a lot of activities, climbing has different levels. At the base level, a three-year-old can top out on easy routes that need very little skill. But the higher the level, the more skill the climb demands.

This leveling system is called grades in climbing. Depending on what part of the world you’re in, you might use a different grading system. If you want the full rundown, we break it all down in how climbing routes are graded. 

In the United States, bouldering (a type of climbing that uses shorter routes without a rope system for safety) uses what’s called a V Scale. For roped climbs (like top-rope, sport climbing and trad climbing), a YDS scale shows the difficulty of the climb and how much skill is involved.

• V Scale: This shows the difficulty of a boulder by putting a number from 0 to 16 after the V. A V6 is significantly harder than a V0. The scale goes all the way up to V16, but very few climbers in the world have ever climbed routes that hard.
• YDS Scale: This shows difficulty by starting with a 5 (meaning both hands and feet are needed to complete the route, not like a hike), then a decimal and another grade from 1 to 15, plus an a, b, c or d that breaks the grade down further. A child can often climb a 5.1, but only a handful of climbers in the world have ever completed a 5.15c.

According to the International Rock Climbing Research Association, the chart below lines up grades with the level of the climb, so you can see lower level, intermediate, advanced and elite skill next to the grade tied to the climb (like the V and YDS grades above).

Qualification #3: Does Climbing Include Individual or Team Competitions?

Climbing has been around since the days of cavemen, and climbing competitions go back to the 16th century, but it wasn’t until 1986 that a competition in Bardonecchia, Italy hosted the first lead climbing competition, in an event called SportRoccia.

Since then, three different disciplines, or formats, of climbing have entered the competition scene:

1. Bouldering competitions: Most bouldering competitions run 5 boulder problems per round. Each climber gets 4 minutes per route and earns points based on the number of attempts and the time it takes to finish. The climber who completes the most routes in the fewest attempts and least time wins.
2. Sport climbing competitions: Probably the most widely known climbing comps. The climber gets 6 minutes and one attempt to climb as high on the route as they can. Whoever gets the furthest, fastest, wins.
3. Speed climbing competitions: Speed climbing is a much newer discipline and it’s controversial in the Olympics, because the skill and muscles it takes are so different from bouldering and sport climbing. The route stays the same for every competition, and the climber who reaches the top fastest wins. The men’s competition speed record is 5.47 seconds, set by Reza Alipour of Iran in 2017, and the women’s record is 6.96 seconds, set by Iuliia Kaplina of Russia.

Over the years these competitions have often been split up, with local, regional, national and international events featuring just one format. But in the last decade there have been plenty of combined-format competitions that pair bouldering and sport climbing.  

For the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, all three disciplines (bouldering, sport climbing and speed climbing) got combined, so the Olympic qualification tournaments included all three too. The climber with the highest combined points wins.

Climbers compete as individuals, but at world competitions they also represent the country they come from. Each country competing in the Olympics for climbing gets a maximum of four athletes, two men and two women, for a total of 40 competitors.

Unlike most countries at the Olympics, though, the USA climbing team doesn’t get any government funding. It depends on companies to sponsor the team and individual climbers.

Qualification #4: Is Climbing Considered Entertainment?

The simple test for entertainment is whether other people watch it. That can be as small as a film or as big as a stadium full of fans. Another way to look at it is anything done “for fun” and not out of “necessity to live.” 

Climbing meets both of those. Climbing used to be a means of survival, a way to reach food or water, but it has now become something people do and watch for fun.

Climbing competitions draw audiences in stadiums, and they’ve been broadcast on TV for over a decade. Films like the documentary Free Solo, one of the highest-grossing climbing documentaries ever, have been watched by hundreds of thousands of people around the world.

On top of that, huge sports networks like ESPN broadcast all of the Olympic qualification competitions live, which was a historic moment for the climbing world in the United States.

Is Climbing In The Olympics?

Climbing debuted at the 2020 (now 2021) Tokyo Olympics. Up to two men and two women represent each country, for a total of 40 competitors. The sport showcased bouldering, sport climbing and speed climbing.

1. Bouldering: Bouldering comps usually give 4 minutes per set route. That’s likely the same at the Olympics, but the Olympic website says “athletes climb as many fixed routes as they can within four minutes,” which could mean they’ll climb multiple routes in a total of four minutes. One thing that’s the same across the Olympics and World Cup comps is that climbers aren’t allowed to try the routes before the clock starts, and they don’t get to watch others climb it either.
2. Sport climbing: At the Olympics they call this lead climbing. Like all world climbing competitions, each competitor attempts the over 15-meter high wall. The goal is to go as high as possible without falling, and the winner is the one who makes it the farthest, fastest. One tricky part of lead climbing is that you have to bring the rope up with you and use what’s called quickdraws to clip the rope to safety bolts along the route. In one Olympic qualifier, competitor Adam Ondra accidentally stepped on a bolt and was disqualified (he later took first place in another qualifying competition to win his spot at the Olympics representing the Czech Republic).
3. Speed climbing: This is one of the more exciting disciplines in the sport because each round is over in a matter of seconds. Unlike the other two disciplines, climbers have had the chance to practice and train on the exact same route for decades (though some competitors will have far less experience). Many climbers feel it’s unfair to fold this into the same combined score, because it takes more memory and quick movement to get up a 15-meter wall set at a 95-degree angle. It’s been announced, though, that the 2024 Olympics will showcase speed climbing as a separate event with separate medals.

Is Outdoor Climbing or Free Soloing Considered A Sport?

Some have argued that Alex Honnold’s El Capitan ascent in the famous Free Solo documentary was a race to reach the top in the fastest time, and so it counts as a sport. But since there were no clear competitors, it doesn’t count as a competition.

That doesn’t mean free soloing or outdoor climbing isn’t a sport. It’s a branch of the sport, just not a competitive branch. 

And if you’ve ever watched someone hold it together hundreds of feet off the deck, you already know how much of climbing happens in the head. That mental side is a big reason so many people call it a sport in the first place, and it’s something we dig into in why climbing is such a mental sport.

Whether you’re here to win the “is it a sport” argument at the gym or you actually want to get better at it, the best thing you can do is train a little, often. Send Edition sends you one short climbing drill every week, about 15 minutes each, and it’s completely free. Get the weekly drills here and start leveling up.

Watch Free Solo on Amazon Prime

Frequently asked questions

Is climbing a sport?

Yes. Climbing meets all four parts of the dictionary definition of a sport. It takes significant physical exertion (8.5 on the MET scale), it takes real skill measured by grading systems, climbers compete as individuals and for their countries, and it’s watched by large audiences for entertainment. It also debuted in the Olympics at Tokyo in 2021.

Is climbing in the Olympics?

Yes. Climbing debuted at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics with bouldering, sport (lead) climbing and speed climbing combined into one event, with 40 competitors total. Starting with the 2024 Olympics, speed climbing was announced as a separate event with its own medals.

Is free soloing a sport?

Free soloing is a branch of the sport of climbing, just not a competitive one. Alex Honnold’s El Capitan ascent in Free Solo wasn’t a competition because there were no clear competitors, but free soloing and outdoor climbing still count as climbing, which is a sport.

How physically demanding is climbing?

Climbing is a high-intensity activity. It sits at 8.5 on the MET scale, well above the 6.0 threshold for high intensity. Easier efforts take less energy (rappelling down a route is around 5.6, or moderate intensity), so the harder you climb, the more exerting it gets.

Does climbing require skill?

Yes. Climbs are rated on grading systems like the V Scale for bouldering and the YDS scale for roped climbs, and the higher the grade, the more skill it takes. A child can climb a V0 or a 5.1, while only a handful of climbers in the world have ever completed a 5.15c.

Sara Climbing Coach, Climbing Trainer, Writer

Sara is the founder of Send Edition, author of '77 Drills to Help You Climb Better,' the creator of 'Elevate Your Climbing: Training Planner and Tracker,' and climbing coach.

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