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General Climbing Discussion

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(Institutional) Racism in Climbing? 3-Apr-2011 At 8:32:44 AM ClimbingNT

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There are a handful of climbers up in the top end who are part of 'the originals'.
Probably because the demographic is also a lot different than most other places in Australia.

I think a lot does come down to location, exposure to climbing/climbers, etc.

For example, there are not that many euro sth Africans compared to other groups of races in areas in Europe that are big on climbing, therefore the number of climbers around from that race would be a lot smaller.

Climbing in Aus is no where near as popular as most Aussie sports, and a lot of sport orientated people would probably focus more on cricket, rugby, afl, etc than climbing.

It takes a special minded person to want to climb, not everyone is comfortable with the risks involved.. Stuff up playing footy and you may get a busted shoulder. Stuff up climbing and the consequences are a lot higher.

I am sure as time progresses and the sport becomes more mainstream, you may find that more and more people will get into climbing. For example, even in Thailand you dont see many Thai's climbing or DWS, as climbing is still quite a 'new niche thing' in these areas than a popular sport IMO. Its only a matter of time until more of the locals take advantage of their surroundings, especially if big sponsorships can be had.