Finnish Pro Climbers Fulfill “Long-Standing Dream” to Open a Training Gym

A look at the bouldering walls inside Project Konepaja — Project Konepaja, a bouldering gym that recently opened in Helsinki, Finland, was designed to have “everything needed for systematic training,” co-founder and CEO Ville Kurru stated. Other team members behind the project include professional climbers Anna Liina Laitinen and Nalle Hukkataival, who hail from the city. (All photos are by Sami Laitinen, courtesy of Project Konepaja)

Project Konepaja
Helsinki, Finland

Specs: Project Konepaja opened last week in Helsinki, Finland, on October 18. According to co-founder and CEO Ville Kurru, opening the gym “has been a long-standing dream of several Project Konepaja team members,” including professional climbers Anna Liina Laitinen and Nalle Hukkataival; various long-time climbers and routesetters; music festival, bar, nightclub and restaurant founder Toni Rantanen; and part-owner KiipeilyAreena, a Finnish gym chain. The project was initiated by Laitinen, who also assembled the team. Both Laitinen and Hukkataival are shareholders and will assist with the gym’s routesetting.

Like in North America and other parts of the world, Kurru said indoor climbing has been growing in Finland in the last ten years, in part because it is a suitable pastime for the long Finnish winters. “Finnish outdoor bouldering has also become a global phenomenon,” Kurru added, “partly thanks to Nalle Hukkataival,” who is regarded as the first climber to climb V17 after sending Burden of Dreams nine years ago in Loviisa, Finland. Kurru stated Project Konepaja was designed as an alternative to some gyms in Finland that “focus on catering more for beginners and first-timers,” adding that the team made a point to take climbers with more experience into account when planning the design and routesetting at their new facility.

According to Kurru, Helsinki is the team’s hometown, and they felt there was an opportunity for a gym like Project Konepaja in the city. Once they found a space that felt right, they decided to “make it happen together,” he said. The team opted to construct a bouldering gym because bouldering is increasing in popularity in Finland, explained Kurru. Additionally, the space the team found—a protected train factory over 100 years old—would not have been tall enough to accommodate rope walls, and the leadership team wanted to preserve the original building as much as possible. “I myself have lived in Konepaja for 18 years and dreamed of a climbing gym in the old train factories,” Kurru said. “The area is right in the middle of Helsinki’s vibrant downtown and is surrounded by a lot of people and also climbers. The area is also very easy to get to by several public transport options.”

A training and fitness area at the new gym — *Kurru described KiipeilyAreena as a Project Konepaja shareholder, which will allow KiipeilyAreena members to climb at the gym and use the various training amenities with no extra charge.*

The professional climbers on the team “designed the gym’s training facilities together with the routesetting team and other shareholders to match what they’ve long felt was missing” in the region, shared Kurru, who noted they also wanted “to improve their own climbing and to help bring the climbing community back together.” In addition to 5,000 square feet of climbing wall surface on walls reaching 4.5 meters (14.8 feet), the gym will feature a spray wall, Kilter Board, Tension Board 2, 2024 Moon Board and Monsterwall—the latter of which is a 10-meter (32.8-foot), 45- and 55-degree wall, where the padding follows the rise of the wall. Additionally, there are “extensive training facilities” inside the gym, Kurru said, including campus and finger boards and a gym area with strength and aerobic training amenities. Throughout the design process, the team made choices for the wall angles, holds and boards with a goal of helping climbers prepare for hard outdoor climbing as well as competition climbing. “A good training space doesn’t have to be massive,” Kurru continued. “An efficient, well-designed area with quality wall angles, a spray wall, boards and a gym is enough.”