From 18 to 25 July, the World Climbing Youth Championship Arco 2026 will bring the future of international climbing to Trentino. Free entry for the public, free live streaming and a large Village open to athletes, families and fans.
Arco, 18 June 2026 – One month before the start of the World Climbing Youth Championship Arco 2026, one of the most anticipated events of the international youth sport climbing season is entering its final countdown. From 18 to 25 July, the Arco Climbing Stadium will welcome the world’s best young talents in Lead, Speed and Boulder, once again turning Arco and Garda Trentino into a key reference point for the international climbing community.
The event will be hosted at the FASI Federal Technical Centre in Arco, a facility that today represents a European-level benchmark for athlete preparation and the organisation of international events. It is a modern venue, designed for high performance while also focusing on innovation, sustainability and energy and technological efficiency. In this regard, the new photovoltaic system is one of the Centre’s flagship features, confirming the Federation’s commitment to promoting a model of sport that is increasingly attentive to the quality of facilities, environmental impact and the development of young talents.
The final registration numbers confirm the scale of the event: 725 athletes are expected, representing 68 international delegations, accompanied by 239 team officials, delegation heads, coaches and medical staff from the national teams. Overall, the World Championship will bring more than 960 official delegation members to Arco, in addition to the organising staff, volunteers, families, fans and spectators.
The breakdown of the competition programme highlights the technical and sporting scale of the event. Lead will include 403 entries across the different categories, with 109 athletes in Under 19 Men, 83 in Under 19 Women, 105 in Under 17 Men and 106 in Under 17 Women. Speed will feature 195 entries overall, divided into 59 Under 19 Men, 37 Under 19 Women, 56 Under 17 Men and 43 Under 17 Women. Boulder will be the most numerous discipline, with 430 entries overall: 115 in Under 19 Men, 90 in Under 19 Women, 107 in Under 17 Men and 118 in Under 17 Women. Some athletes will compete in more than one discipline, confirming the high level of technical versatility required by the event.
Special attention will naturally be focused on the Italian delegation, ready to experience a home World Championship with a large and competitive team. Italy will be represented by 28 athletes, accompanied by 11 members of the technical, medical and management staff, for a total of 39 official team members.
The young Italian athletes will compete across all disciplines in the programme. In Lead Under 19 Men, Andrea Ludovico Chelleris, Alessandro Sofia and Gianluca Vighetti will represent Italy, while in Lead Under 19 Women the Italian team will field Margherita Pernigotti, Sofia Brenna and Emma Gregorotti. In Lead Under 17 Men, the Italian colours will be worn by Andrea Locatelli, Riccardo Rizzoli and Emiliano Zingrini; in Lead Under 17 Women, Chiara Franceschi, Carolina Gradaschi and Leonora Lucarelli will be on the start list.
In Speed Under 19 Men, Italy will line up Alessandro Trezzi, Alessandro Corna and Francesco Ponzinibio; in Speed Under 19 Women, Sara Strocchi, Eva Mengoli and Alice Marcelli will compete. In Speed Under 17 Men, Italy will be represented by Jacopo Titi, Samuele Erra and Giorgio Villa, while Carolina Mariani will compete in Speed Under 17 Women.
In Boulder Under 19 Men, the Italian team will include Giovanni Bagnoli, Matteo Reusa and Tommaso Milanese; in Boulder Under 19 Women, Nicole Francesconi and Emma Gregorotti will compete. In Boulder Under 17 Men, Emiliano Zingrini, Pietro Franzoni and Leonardo Donola will represent Italy, while Chiara Franceschi, Carolina Gradaschi and Leonora Lucarelli will compete in Boulder Under 17 Women.
For the Italian youth national team, this will be an event of major technical and symbolic value: competing in a World Championship hosted in Italy, in front of the home crowd, represents a major opportunity for growth and an important step in the development pathway of Italy’s young talents towards the highest international level.
An event of this scale is not only a major sporting appointment, but also a significant opportunity to promote the territory. The Youth World Championship confirms the deep bond between sport climbing, Arco and Trentino: a relationship built over time through sporting culture, nature, outdoor tourism, organisational expertise and a community that has always been closely connected to climbing.
The contribution of the institutions that have supported the development of the event and accompanied the growth of the federal project in the area has been fundamental. The Italian Sport Climbing Federation wishes to express its sincere thanks to the Autonomous Province of Trento, the Municipality of Arco and the Italian Government’s Department for Sport, whose support has made a significant contribution to the delivery of an event that will serve as an international showcase for hundreds of young athletes, while also promoting the local community, the economy and the image of the territory.
“One month before the start of the Youth World Championship, we feel both the responsibility and the pride of hosting an event of this importance in Italy,” said Davide Battistella, President of the Italian Sport Climbing Federation. “Arco is a symbolic place for world climbing, and welcoming 725 young athletes from all over the world means investing concretely in the future of our sport. Hosting the event within our Federal Technical Centre, a facility that represents a European excellence for athlete preparation and the organisation of international events, gives this World Championship even greater significance. It will be a major competition, but also a celebration open to the public, families and fans. We would like to thank the institutions — starting with the Autonomous Province of Trento, the Municipality of Arco and the Italian Government’s Department for Sport — as well as our partners, federal sponsors, local associations and everyone contributing to the organisation of an event that aims to leave a positive mark on the territory and on the climbing movement.”
Alongside FASI, a central role will also be played by the partners and federal sponsors supporting the development of Italian sport climbing and the organisation of the event: Allianz, FASI Main Sponsor, and the technical sponsors La Sportiva and Petzl.
The involvement of the local community will be clear from the very beginning, with the Opening Ceremony featuring the participation of the Lega Sbandieratori flag-wavers group and the Arco Dance School, further confirming the link between the event, the city and the local community. An important role will also be played by Cantiere 26 – Arco Youth Centre, which will collaborate on the side activities by making its spaces and refreshment point available during the event. This synergy strengthens the participatory dimension of the World Championship, turning it into an event capable of involving not only athletes and professionals, but also families, young people, associations and local organisations, including Assocentro, confirming the shared desire to build a World Championship deeply rooted in the community and accessible to everyone.
Accessibility will indeed be one of the defining features of the event: all competitions will be free for the public, and no ticket will be required to attend the competitions at the Arco Climbing Stadium. The events will also be available through free live streaming, allowing families, supporters and fans to follow the World Championship from anywhere in Italy and around the world.
Alongside the sporting programme, the World Championship will also come to life through a Village area set up next to the competition venue, designed to welcome the public, families, athletes and fans throughout the event.
The Village will be a space for meeting, entertainment and discovery, featuring a range of food trucks offering food, drinks, desserts and ice cream, as well as exhibition stands and experience areas open to the public. Several partners and technical suppliers from the climbing world will also be present, including Appiano Studio Distribution, High5, Moka and Kando, bringing materials, holds and technical solutions dedicated to the discipline to Arco.
There will also be activities designed to engage climbers, families and visitors: the CrushClimbing stand will offer games and challenges for climbing enthusiasts, while official event products will be available in the merchandising area. An experience area is also planned, with yoga classes, skate activities thanks to a small skate park, and a climbing wall dedicated to children and parents.
The programme will open on Friday 17 July with the Opening Ceremony, designed to celebrate not only the start of the World Championship, but also the strong connection between the event and the territory. The competitions will begin on Saturday 18 July with the Lead Under 17 qualifications. Sunday 19 July will feature the Lead Under 19 qualifications, before the decisive day on Monday 20 July, dedicated to the Lead Under 17 and Under 19 semi-finals and finals.
On Tuesday 21 July, Speed will take centre stage, with practice, qualification rounds and finals for the Under 17 and Under 19 categories. From Wednesday 22 July, the World Championship will continue with Boulder: Under 17 qualifications on 22 July, Under 19 qualifications on 23 July, Under 17 semi-finals and finals on Friday 24 July, and Under 19 semi-finals and finals on Saturday 25 July, the final day of the event.
For eight days, Arco will be the centre of the future of world climbing: young talents, national teams, coaches, volunteers and spectators will come together for an event that combines competition, participation, entertainment and territorial promotion.
World Climbing Youth Championship Arco 2026
Arco Climbing Stadium – Arco, Trentino
18–25 July 2026
Lead, Speed, Boulder
Free entry
Free live streaming
The full competition schedule and further information about the event are available online:
Official event website
https://www.worldclimbingarco.com/
Official event page on World Climbing
https://www.worldclimbing.com/events/world-climbing-youth-championship-arco-2026
Further details about side events and activities for the public will be announced in the coming months as Arco prepares to host a week of world-class climbing.
The countdown has officially begun.
From 18 to 25 July 2026, Arco will become the world stage of youth sport climbing.