Eastern Mountain Sports will be title sponsor for a pro bouldering competition in New Yorks Central Park on June 25, 2011, featuring the worlds best pro climbers.
The event, taking place in New York City for the first time, is one of the many activities included in the 7th annual Adventures NYC presented by The North Face, encouraging youth participation in the great outdoors. The Unified Bouldering Championships (UBC) are part of the official pro tour for climbing in the U.S.
As Eastern Mountain Sports was founded by rock climbers, climbing has always been the heart and soul of our brand, said Ted Manning, executive vice president of retail marketing and merchandising at Eastern Mountain Sports. Weve been sponsoring climbing competitions for years; however, this takes our participation to an entirely different level. Having the Eastern Mountain Sports Pro front and center in the heart of New York City not only enables us to connect with urban, outdoor enthusiasts and the climbing community but also affords us the opportunity to touch the next generation of consumers. Its the perfect opportunity to show young people how they can get started in climbing and experience the sense of accomplishment that is unique to the sport.
The Eastern Mountain Sports Pro takes place June 23-25, with qualifying events on the 23rd and 24th. The final round of competition will take place at Mineral Springs in Central Park. Top climbers expected to compete this summer include Alex Johnson, Alex Puccio, Chris Sharma, Daniel Woods, and Ethan Pringle.
Adventures NYC is one of the largest urban, outdoor consumer events in the country. It is a collaboration between AIM (Active Interest Media) and the NYC Parks Department to showcase what Central Park and the great outdoors have to offer. In addition to the climbing championship, the event will feature a rock climbing wall open to the public, a fishing and paddling zone, fitness clinics, obstacle courses, an outdoor career fair and many more activity stations.
In our sixth season of working to grow competition climbing on the biggest stages worldwide, its fantastic to begin to get a glimpse of ways our sport can continue to grow, says UBC Pro Tour Director Pete Ward. We are thrilled to partner with Eastern Mountain Sports. For first time ever, we will put the best climbers on the planet right in the center at Adventures NYC in Central Park. As climbers, we have all benefited tremendously from our passion for climbing; events like this give us the best possible opportunity to bring that passion to the widest possible audience.
The Unified Bouldering Championships is the official pro tour for climbing in the United States. The UBC Pro Tour is conducted by a partnership of USA Climbing, the National Governing Body for climbing as recognized by the International Federation of Sport Climbing and the International Olympic Committee, and NE2C Productions, the leading event production company in climbing and the group responsible for the changing face of professional bouldering competitions over the past five years. By showcasing the top athletes in the climbing world, the UBC seeks to promote the growth of climbing through competition and a multi media viewing experience.
