IFSC Vice President: China is "key country" for future of sport climbing

The sport climbing competitions at the World Games got underway on Thursday morning, and Sports Scene's Yuan Rui spoke with Toru Kobinata, Vice President of the International Federation of Sport Climbing, about China's event-staging capabilities, the development of the discipline, and his impressions of the country.

Kobinata praised China's impressive hosting capabilities and growth in multiple sports.

"It's not my first time coming to this country," he said. "And every time, I've been very surprised by your capability to host such a big multi-sport event in China."

The IFSC Vice President reiterated that China is a "key country" for sport climbing's future, as the 58-year-old looks at adding team events to strengthen the overall appeal of the discipline. 

"You know, compared to individual sports, we really need to improve the spirit of team sports because, simply, most human activities are done as a team. So for the IFSC, to establish – to start – a good team format event is very much important."