NANJING, China--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Nanjing 2014 Sports Lab has welcomed large, enthusiastic crowds of people every day since opening eight days ago alongside the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games (YOG). Out of the four sports in the Sports Lab (Sport Climbing, Roller Skating, Wushu and Skateboarding), Sport Climbing is perhaps the most noticeable because the athletes climb a huge wall that towers over the rest of the 4-in-1 venue at Fishmouth Park in Nanjing. Every day from 17 to 27 August spectators get two 30-minute Sport Climbing shows filled with extreme bouldering, lead climbing and speed climbing.
The Nanjing 2014 Sports Lab is a unique experimental concept that aims to spread the Olympic spirit to the young people of the world using non-Olympic sports. It is also being used by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to gauge the popularity of the sports with young people. Top athletes have been invited from around the world to entertain onlookers with their world-class athletic abilities. After the performances, spectators get a chance to try the sports out for themselves under the careful supervision of the professionals.
Nanjing 2014 has invited 16 top Chinese and international climbers to show off their extraordinary speed, power and determination in their sport. “It’s completely different from anything else,” said Jennifer Wood, the 2013 Junior British Bouldering Champion. “It’s a good spectator sport because it goes vertically. It’s just great to watch."
Accompanying the athletes on their stint at the Sports Lab is Jérôme Meyer from France. Meyer is the 2008 European Boulder Champion and the Sports Manager at the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC). "First of all, I think participating the Nanjing Sports Lab will be a great experience for our young climbers, because this will give them a taste of Olympism. As an athlete, that has immense value," said Meyer. "I’m excited for the future of sport climbing, because this invitation to be part of the Olympic games is a proof of recognition of our sport. It has even more value when you invite the youth in such a way, because they are the future. For me, the evolution is here."
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