The North Face Explorer, social philanthropist and activist, Alex Honnold, is known for his free solo style of climbing which has brought him and the sport into the spotlight in the recent years. But his sports career and life are more than just athletic feats or historical records. Alex is an inspiration and a role model and a public speaker who brings up the importance of reflecting towards many social and environmental problems that we are facing in this modern world.

Through the Honnold Foundation, he donates a third of his income into bringing sustainable solar energy to communities that need it the most while spending big part of his time living in his van, climbing and being a voice for environmental issues across the globe. Powered by a plant based diet and a humbling attitude, Alex the athlete, knows how preparation and mental focus are the key factors to diminish the risks he is accepting to take in a calculated manner. After a back injury in 2016, Alex came to China on a climbing trip with Felipe Camargo and Jimmy Chin which he managed to salvage. the clinic was there to support him and speed up the quality of his recovery and we feel extremely proud to be able to witness how the work of a lifetime has been portrayed in the movie FREE SOLO.

”It is what it is, and it is pretty good” - Alex Honnold

On August 6th, Janja Garnbret made history by becoming the first women to have won the First Gold medal in Sport Climbing in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. At 23 years of age, Janja has redefined the competitive side of the sport... and is not stopping yet.

Janja burst into the scene in 2014, her first ever world cup and to date, she has already conquered 6 world championships, 32 world cups and 9 overall world cups. In 2019, she completed the unthinkable clean sweep of winning all bouldering world cups in the whole season.

But the spirit of the sport lies beyond the competitive edge that she has already proven to be the best of all times. She has redefined hard work, persistence and the inner mastery of mental resilience and become an icon for the generations to come, an inspiration for men and women alike in a sport where to leave the final legacy, some argue the need to conquer the king lines in the outdoor world.

"It's not enough to have desire for gold medals, you have to love the process that gets you there." - Janja Garnbret

A champion of both kickboxing and women’s rights, the clinic Ambassador Michele Aboro has inspired many with her arduous journey to becoming an undefeated world champion. She may have retired with 21 wins and 12 knockout victories, but this sport was not always a welcoming place for the athlete. Starting out in the profession at a time when women were not legally allowed to train or hold licenses in boxing, Michele faced many roadblocks and defeated many stereotypes on her way to the top. 

Retiring in 2001 with six world titles in kickboxing, boxing, and K1 under her belt, Michele and her wife Masca Aboro Yuen decided to establish their legacy in Shanghai: Aboro Academy. After being diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer, Michele became even more impassioned by her goal of promoting boxing, gender equality in sports, and a healthy lifestyle for children here in China.

Aboro Academy is the perfect culmination of these goals as it allows her to teach and inspire others to get involved with the sport while also giving back to the community around her. One way she has done this is with the creation of the Aboro Foundation which provides free boxing classes to kids and people who have talent and want to get somewhere physically in the sport. 

As the first sport she came to know of back in 2000, windsurfing has accompanied the clinic's ambassador Peina Chen's life for over 20 years. In 2005, Peina was selected to be on the national windsurfing team at a young age of 16. Slender, tall and talented, she was put with great expectations. In the 2015 world championship, she rewrote the Chinese wind surfing history by being the first finalist in the world championship and winning gold. Years of hard training and perseverance paid off, she seemed unstoppable from then on, winning a silver medal in the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, a gold medal in the world championship in 2017 and a gold again in the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games. She’s unequivocally one of the best in her sport.

Announcing her retirement before Tokyo Olympics is not an end, but a new beginning to a chapter full of possibilities. To her, the most valuable thing about being an athlete is not how many wins and honors she has achieved throughout the years, but the ability to come out stronger whenever faced with challenges and difficulties.

"Whenever faced with uncertainties, don't dwell on the past, don't be afraid of the future. The true meaning of game is not about success or failure, but to give everything and have the calmness to accept whatever the result may be." - Peina Chen

In 2015, with just less than two years of experience in ultra running, Yan Longfei broke the course record in HK 100 Ultra Trail Race as the 1st place finisher, then took 1st in a series of ultra running events later that year, he is also the first ultra trail runner from China who’s being recognized on the world stage.

Due to injuries and the following surgery, it forced him to hit a pause on his performance, but it didn't stop him. the clinic designed his rehabilitation program and supported him with a phase-by-phase, goal oriented and highly individualized plan which was followed by him meticulously. Coming back, he was even stronger, breaking the course record of the UTNH 100km race, his first race post surgery.

This is not just another come back story, but also a story of passion for the sport, perseverance, and a scientific approach to injury.

“Winning and loosing aren’t forever, even if I fail for 1000 times, there’s still dream, I still enjoy being on the trail.” - Yan Longfei

At 110 meters of the National Chinese Record of Freediving, the clinic Ambassador Wang Ao Lin’s thoughts are those of pure mindfulness where his body is finely tuned for what he has been training for. The ascend leaves the weight of the water behind, bringing the weight of life onto his thoughts. Breaking the record again brings more responsibilities, becoming the legacy that will shine the future of Freediving in China.

Ao Lin’s legacy is that of the persistence, the one of becoming one with our thoughts and dreams when life’s weight can be heavier than the tones of water crushing on our bodies.

"Suffer to grow" - Wang Ao Lin

the clinic Ambassador Monica Guo aims to represent China at the 2020 Olympics becoming the first woman to chase the dreamed surfer lifestyle in mainland China.

But Monica was not always set for this successful path and after a big turn of page at 22, she realized that the spark that surf once made her dream, enlightened a whole new generation of young Chinese girls looking to break the tradition and the stereotypes that society has put on them.

Monica's journey to the top professional level has encountered some physical difficulties that at the clinic, our team is looking into helping her manage so as to keep her dreams up and shining.

"Don't be afraid. Don't be afraid to change" - Monica Guo

In May of 2016, the clinic Ambassador Marcos Costa had the opportunity to climb the beautiful and world known Ama Dablam in Nepal along with Kailas teammate Ales Cesen. Ama Dablam is a 6,812 meters peak and it is located in the Himalaya range in eastern Nepal. They climbed the traditional Southwest Ridge route along with photographer Jonathan Griffith and climber Andy Houseman.

Marcos journey to the top has been praised many times as some of the boldest ascents of many of the unclimbed peaks in China gaining him the Golden Rhino Award (currently at the clinic) and a nomination to the prestigious Piolet D'Or.

His passion for the freedom in the outdoors and the road less taken lifestyle, has shown us how through determination, we can achieve more than ascents while leaving an imprint for others to follow.

"Climbing is life, get out there" - Marcos Costa