CHINA PREPARES FOR ICE CLIMBING SHOWDOWN
International athletes prepare for second UIAA Ice Climbing event of the season as Beijing, China provides the spectacular setting for competitions in lead and speed.
Competition will be held from 7-9 January.
Livestreaming available on UIAA YouTube and Facebook channels.
Famous for its Great Wall, this weekend China will come into the spotlight for another type of vertical structure.
The magnificent ice climbing walls of Beijing play host to the second leg of the 2017 UIAA Ice Climbing World Tour, supported by The North Face Korea, from 7-9 January as athletes from over 20 different countries are expected to display their prowess, agility and strength on ice. It marks the start of two weeks on the Asian continent as following the event in Beijing, athletes will travel to the traditional ice climbing hotspot of Cheongsong, South Korea for the third event of the season.
HeeYoung Park in action during the season opener in Durango
Last month’s season opener in Durango, Colorado provided gripping entertainment, surprise results and close competition. In the World Cup event in lead, South Korean athlete, and defending World Champion, Shin Woonseon and Russian Alexey Dengin claimed gold medals, showing remarkable agility and determination on some technical routes and under driving rain and gale force winds. Beijing hosts the second round of the lead competition and the first World Cup event of the 2017 calendar in speed. Its stunning structures – lead and speed are in two different locations -have been prepared in conjunction with the Chinese Mountaineering Association, a UIAA member federation. A section of the Great Wall of China is visible from the speed venue.
Athletes and officials preparing for an enthralling weekend in Beijing
“We are delighted that the UIAA Ice Climbing World Tour is making a stop in China,” explains UIAA President Frits Vrijlandt. “The athletes will have a wonderful time, the setting is first class and facilities excellent. With the 2022 Winter Olympic Games taking place in Beijing, this is a significant step for the sport and its ambition to become part of the Olympic programme.”
The event in Beijing is the second of five UIAA World Cup events before the season culminates with the biennial World Championships, held in Champagny-en-Vanoise, France from 4-5 Feburary.
The Beijing event programme can be downloaded here.
How to Follow: Live Coverage
Livestreaming will be available on the UIAA Facebook and YouTube channels from the semi-finals and finals of both the lead and speed events.
Viewing figures for the season opener in Durango hit new heights with over 600,000 combined video views from the livestreaming and feature packages produced by the UIAA. The UIAA, with the support of QTV Sports, is strengthening its commitment to ice climbing in 2017 offering more ways for fans to follow the events. More hours of livestreaming will be available, together with a playback function for those not able to follow live and increased behind the scenes footage from the events.
The livestreaming schedule for Beijing is:
Sunday 8 January
12:45 Speed finals
16:45 or 17:45 Lead semi-finals (timings tbc)
Monday 9 January
10:55 Lead finals
*All times are local time GMT+8
Durango unchained
Highlights from the season opener in Durango, Colorado can be found on the UIAA YouTube channel.
Photos from the event can be viewed and downloaded from the UIAA Flickr channel.
Results
Results from round 1 of the season can be found on the dedicated UIAA results centre. Live results from Beijing will be posted here.
Competition Schedule
World Cup
7-9 January, Beijing (China)
14-15 January, Cheongsong (South Korea)
20-21 January, Saas Fee (Switzerland)
28-29 January, Rabenstein (Italy)
Logistical information related to the events can be found here.
UIAA Ice Climbing World Championships
4-5 February, Champagny-en-Vanoise (France)
UIAA Ice Climbing World Youth Championships
10-11 February, Champagny-en-Vanoise (France)
PARTNER
