Last week, USA Climbing released its strategic plan for 2025-2028. The plan ranges significantly in its touchpoints, from expanding youth, collegiate and recreational participation around the country to providing professional development for industry members and preparing USA Climbing for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. “While Olympic and Paralympic pathways push performance limits and inspire new generations, USA Climbing remains committed to grassroots growth,” the Strategic Plan states.
The Strategic Plan proclaims that “a new era of competition climbing is on the horizon,” and the plan is anchored by four pillars. Each pillar has bullet points outlining various strategic initiatives. The four pillars are: Growing climbing and succeeding internationally by supporting climbers at all levels; building strategic partnerships that strengthen USA Climbing’s ecosystem; delivering a world-class National Training Center; and demonstrating organizational excellence through trusted governance, financial sustainability and respected leadership within the Olympic and Paralympic movement.
Very little of the Strategic Plan is likely surprising to anyone who has followed USA Climbing’s goals, initiatives and areas of focus for the past few years. However, there are a few notable highlights. For example, the Strategic Plan makes explicit mention of “reimaging” USA Climbing’s youth series and “[reducing] burdens on gyms, volunteers and officials” as related to USA Climbing’s youth competitions. (USA Climbing already announced some changes to the youth series a few months ago.)
USA Climbing’s CEO Mark Norman elaborated by telling CBJ, “We’re excited to introduce several changes designed to increase flexibility and ease the operational load on gyms, volunteers, and officials, while providing a better developmental series. These changes include allowing non-competitors (gym members) to climb on the terrain, enabling gyms to host competitions without an on-site regional coordinator, permitting peer judging, and offering greater format and scheduling flexibility so hosts can run any discipline at any time of the year.”
The new Strategic Plan also mentions that “Regional Training Sites” will be established “in partnership with [existing] gyms…throughout the country and recognized as centers of developmental excellence.” Norman explained, “USA Climbing will solicit applications through an open process and recognize a limited number of gyms that go above and beyond to support competition climbing—for example, by investing in high-level coaching and routesetting, providing appropriate competition terrain, and demonstrating a commitment to USA Climbing competition hosting. USA Climbing will then highlight those facilities within our community.”
Additionally, the Strategic Plan says that USA Climbing’s new National Training Center—which is currently in development in Salt Lake City in partnership with Momentum—will be completed in time to “positively impact athlete preparation” for the 2028 Olympics and Paralympics.
The full 2025-2028 Strategic Plan can be read here.
