The History of Artificial Climbing Walls
Before discussing artificial climbing walls, let’s first introduce what rock climbing is. The rise of rock climbing can be traced back to the 18th century in European mountaineering activities. Prior to that, humans were quite fearful of approaching mountainous areas, often believing them to be inhabited by demons. It wasn’t until the 18th century that some missionaries began crossing mountains for missionary work, and scientists started venturing into the mountains to conduct observations and research on natural ecosystems. In addition to these groups, there emerged a new social class — industrialists, engineers, bankers, and others — formed as a result of the Industrial Revolution. These individuals, who had both money and leisure time, began to take up mountaineering as a recreational activity. During this period, the “first ascent” (referring to the first time a particular peak was climbed) became the goal pursued by all climbers. Once the more gentle and easily accessible peaks in the Alps had all been "first ascended," the remaining challenges were the steep and rugged mountains with sheer cliffs. To overcome these year-round icy and rocky terrains, climbers developed a set of techniques using both hands and feet. However, at that time, both the techniques and equipment were still quite rudimentary. It wasn’t until around World War II, when the military began developing climbing techniques to meet the demands of special terrain combat, that modern rock climbing gradually took shape.
Rock climbing truly became an independent sport in 1970 in France. Prior to that, it had been considered a sub-discipline of mountaineering, mainly used to overcome difficulties encountered during climbs. The term “sport climbing” also officially emerged during this period and was given a clear definition. From then on, climbing gained a new life of its own, separating from mountaineering and developing independently. More and more people, even those who were not mountaineers or had never climbed a mountain before, began to discover great enjoyment in the sport of rock climbing.