The fourth World Cup stage of the season kicked off at the famous Kletterzentrum in Innsbruck.
The opening competition day of the IFSC World Cup Innsbruck 2024 presented two rounds of Boulder qualifications, both featuring a record number of participants – 84 women and 98 men.
Coming from a the third place she secured at last month’s World Cup in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, France’s Naïlé Maignan climbed to the top of the ranking after flashing all five boulders in group A. Tied with Maignan was Germany’s 18-year-old Anna Maria Apel, whose best placement in a Boulder World Cup event so far is the 16th place she took in Keqiao, China, earlier this year.
Five more athletes finished the qualification round with a perfect five-and-five: Israel’s Ayala Kerem, France’s Oriane Bertone, and USA’s Annie Sanders in group B, and Slovenia’s duo Janja Garnbret and Katja Debevec in group A.
Also making it to the top 26 was Garnbret and Debevec’s teammate Jennifer Eucharia Buckley – 11th with four tops and five zones in her World Cup debut in the discipline. At 17 years old, Buckley has already won two European Cups in 2024 – in Klagenfurt, Austria, in Boulder; and in Augsburg, Germany, in Lead.
For the women’s Boulder qualification complete results click here.
Despite being interrupted due to heavy rain, the men’s Boulder qualification round provided good entertainment to the spectators of the Kletterzentrum Innsbruck, as a pair of teenagers surprisingly finished in first place.
Indeed, 16-year-old French climber Samuel Richard and 18-year-old Spanish climber Guillermo Peinado Franganillo placed at the top of the ranking with five tops and five zones each, preceding a duo of Japanese climbers – Anraku Sorato and Amagasa Sohta – who followed in third with the same number of tops and zones, but higher attempts.
Also concluding with five and five, Tokyo 2020 Olympian and Paris 2024 qualified athlete Colin Duffy of the USA took fifth place.
“I had a fun time on the boulders, Kind of physical style which I enjoy, and I think I was in a good headspace,” said Duffy at the end of his round. “I love Innsbruck, it is the site of my first Youth World Championships, one of my special moments. Every year it is a pleasure to visit and I’m excited to continue the competition.”
For the men’s Boulder qualification complete results click here.
The IFSC World Cup Innsbruck 2024 will continue tomorrow with the women’s Boulder semi-final and final, respectively taking place at 13:00 (UTC+2:00) and 19:30.
News and updates about the event will be available on the IFSC website and on the Federation’s digital channels: Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, TikTok, and exclusively for the Chinese audience, Douyin and Weibo.