After presenting two home climbers with a ticket to the Paris Olympics, day one of the IFSC African Qualifier in Pretoria, South Africa, concluded with the second phase of the women’s Boulder & Lead semi-final.
Following an intense Boulder round, which unfortunately had to be interrupted multiple times because of the rain, the 12 competitors were able to climb the Lead wall in great weather conditions.
19-year-old Rauen Krohn of South Africa placed first with 171.7 points thanks to an almost-perfect Boulder phase – where she scored 99.6 points – and a consistent Lead performance. Lauren Mukheibir and Ariane Janata-Burns, also representing the home country, followed in second and third place, respectively with 143.4 and 131.7 points.
Climbing only a couple of hours after placing second in the women’s Speed event, Tegwen Oates placed fourth with 109.3.
Also making it to the final is 16-year-old Caitlin Bouwer, who climbed up a few positions with a consistent Lead round: “It’s been amazing. I’m very happy, the Lead route was fun. Now I’m just going to eat well and sleep really well, there will be time to be nervous.”
Mauritius’s Doriane Saramandif, who finished 10th with 40.5 points, said: “I was not very happy with my Boulder round, but I’m very proud of how I climbed the Lead route.”
For the complete results of the women’s Boulder & Lead semi-final click here.
A detailed schedule of the event is available on the dedicated event page. All semi-finals and finals, plus Speed qualifications, will be live streamed on the IFSC YouTube channel.
News and updates about the event will be available on the IFSC website, and on the Federation’s digital channels: Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, and exclusively for the Chinese audience, Douyin and Weibo.