The news meeting on GB/T 22517.12-2024, Technical requirements and test methods for sports field—Part 12: Natural sport climbing venue, was held in Yangshuo county, Southwest China’s Guangxi province.

GB/T 22517.12-2024, China’s first national standard for natural climbing venues, was published in August, and officially came into effect on December 1, 2024, and its development and implementation will fill the gap in China’s standards for climbing venues.

Pan Huanyou, Senior Engineer from China Aero Polytechnical Establishment and a drafting expert, interpreted this national standard. The standard defines the terms and definitions of natural climbing venues, stipulates the requirements, inspection methods, and qualification rules of the sites, and provides requirements for the investigation, development, and certification of natural climbing sites.

On the same day, climbing enthusiasts from many countries such as Germany and all over China participated in the 16th Yangshuo Climbing Festival held in Yangshuo county, which is renowned for Karst landforms and attracts more than 20 million tourists from more than 40 countries every year. There are approximately 1,200 climbing routes of different climbing degrees in Yangshuo, the birthplace of natural climbing in China.

The release and implementation of GB/T 22517.12-2024 and other standards for services of helicopter tourism bases and operation of powered parachutes will foster the concept of standardization of Yangshuo’s tourism industry, and further improve the quality of services.