The Lead World Youth Championships: Ashima Shiraishi and Janja Garnbret on Top of Their Game
As the first ever Bouldering Youth and Junior World Championships that was held in Arco, Italy at the end of August turned out really well, showing a lot of promise for the sport to the future, the Lead and Speed World Youth Championships were no less thrilling. With Youth A, Youth B, and Juniors competing, the event was full of promising performances from more than 750 young athletes who gathered to compete on the city’s spectacular outdoor climbing structures, and it was great to see so many young athletes from a lot of different countries performing at a world-class level.
The idyllic mountain town of Arco was in the spotlight again when the sport climbing’s rising stars battled for not only their countries but their names. A superb performances were seen in the Female Youth B and Female Youth A categories. Although they were not competing in the same category, US's Ashima Shiraishi and Janja Garnbret of Slovenia dominated both and managed to top the same final route and secure gold with a comfortable margin. When these two prodigies reach the Senior category, their rivalry will no doubt make for one of the most exciting duel the climbing world has ever seen.
November 4, 2023 – Val Verzasca, Switzerland – The Verzasca Dam, an engineering marvel nestled in the picturesque Val Verzasca of Switzerland that stands 220 meters tall, became the stage for the climbing elite. Red Bull Dual Ascent, now in its
second edition, attracted 24 of the world's best…
In the Junior category, all-time favorite Anak Verhoeven took gold with 50+, ahead of Jessica Pilz, who fell one move below, and Julia Chanourdie of France, who completes the podium with a score of 47+.
In the men’s Youth event, Sam Avezou of France won the Male Youth B competition, while Sascha Lehmann of Switzerland took gold in the Male Youth A World Championship. In the Junior category, both Bernhard Rock of Austria and Jesse Grupper of USA managed to stick the final route’s wild dyno and top the route, and Bernhard Rock won thanks to his result in the semi-final. Japaneese Keiichiro Korenaga completes the podium with a score of 53+.
While Speed heavyweights Russia and Ukraine dominate the podiums, there was still a great variety of countries represented in the early final rounds, with young athletes coming from countries not usually represented in international competitions, such as Iran, Indonesia, and Ecuador. These results are promising for the development of Speed climbing facilities and its popularity in a wider range of countries.
Buoyed by the intense cheers of its home crowd, the Italian delegation managed to grab one gold medal and one bronze. The USA, France, Iran and Poland all secured either a first or second place finish in one category, and these promising performances made for an outstanding show under the city’s iconic climbing arch!
Adam Ondra dominated the bouldering scene again and won a gold medal in the second World Cup competition in Salt Lake City. He took second place in the qualification and proceeded to the finals from the same position. This time, he was surprised by the victory and admits that a little luck was…
Adam Ondra completed today's finals in Meiringen, Switzerland, and won a gold medal in the first competition of this year's World Cup. He kept first place in bouldering continuously from the qualification until the very exciting finals. He was satisfied with his excellent form and appreciated a…
