KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — You have the Superbowl for football, the World Cup for soccer and then there's the International Tree Climbing Championship.
Yep, it’s a real thing, and it's happening this weekend in Knoxville.
The competition is hosted by the International Society of Arboriculture, and several of the athletes are professional arborists who scale trees for a living.
The competition aims to showcase the highest level of skills and safety in the field.
Preliminary competitions begin Friday at Lakeshore Park, and athletes will compete in five different events: Aerial Rescue, Work Climb, Secured Footlock, Belayed Speed Climb, and Throw Line.
The highest combined scorers from all five events move on to the Master’s Challenge Championship in hopes of being named the world champion.
It’s free to watch the competition unfold throughout the weekend at Lakeshore Park.
Qualifying events are from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Friday and 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday. The Master’s Challenge Championship is Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.