Used primarily as a building block in organic synthesis, especially in the development of pharmaceuticals and fine chemicals. Its rigid bicyclic structure makes it valuable in medicinal chemistry for conformational restriction of molecules, helping to enhance selectivity and metabolic stability in drug candidates. The phenyl substituent at the 5-position provides additional steric and electronic effects, facilitating further functionalization. It also serves as a model compound in catalysis research, particularly in ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) studies, due to the strain in the norbornene-type ring system. Additionally, derivatives of this compound are explored in materials science for creating functional polymers with tailored mechanical and thermal properties.