The race for the women’s Boulder World Cup 2024 trophy just got a lot more interesting, after Natalia Grossman of the USA secured an emotional gold medal in Prague, Czechia, climbing atop a podium that also featured Naïlé Maignan of France and Oceania Mackenzie of Australia.

Grossman’s final did not start off the right foot, as the US climber only found the top on W1 after nine attempts, and missed to secure the final hold on W2. A confident flash on boulder number three, however, put her back into medal debate, with plenty of possibilities still on the table with one problem to go.

Speaking of her climb on W4 Grossman said: “I kind of started to lose belief on the first move [of the last boulder], my arms were so tired. I knew what the intended beta was, but I was way too tired, so I found my own way. I knew that once I got the zone, I love crimps and I was like ‘I want that crimp, I want that finish hold!’”

Grossman eventually became the one and only finalist topping boulder number four, finishing with three and four, and making it 11 Boulder World Cup golds in her career: “This win means so much to me, more than any win I’ve had recently. It signifies that if I believe in myself, I can do it.

“[Prague] is one of the best World Cups I’ve been to, one of the best crowds. It was awesome, thank you!”

Also on the podium was France’s Naïlé Maignan – second with two tops and four zones – and Australia’s Oceania Mackenzie – third with two and three, and finally able to podium at a World Cup event after placing fourth twice this year.

Japan’s Matsufuji Anon finished fourth with two tops, three zones, and two more attempts to top than Mackenzie. France’s Zélia Avezou followed in fifth with a single top and two zones, while Japan’s second finalist Nakamura Mao closed sixth with no top and three zones.

For the women’s Boulder event complete results click here.

RACE FOR THE TITLE

With her win in Prague, Grossman also jumped at the top of the provisional ranking of the women’s Boulder World Cup event, tied with Slovenia’s Janja Garnbret at 2,000 points. The 23-year-old from Salt Lake City, Utah, has an open streak of three consecutive Boulder World Cup title, and is looking to tie Anna Stöhr of Austria and Noguchi Akiyo of Japan with four trophies. Only France’s Sandrine Levet has won more with five.

Also in the top five are Mackenzie – third with 1,950 points – Nakamura – fourth with 1,912 – and Maignan – fifth with 1,875.

Grossman, Mackenzie, and Nakamura are all registered and expected to compete at this year’s final Boulder competition in Seoul, South Korea.

For the women’s Boulder World Cup provisional ranking click here.

NEXT UP

The ninth and final World Cup event of the season will take place in Seoul from 2 to 6 October. For the first time in IFSC history, the Boulder, Lead, and Speed trophies will be awarded at the same event. Speed qualifications, along with all semi-finals and finals will be live streamed on the IFSC YouTube channel, with geographical restrictions applied.

News and updates about all IFSC events will be available on the IFSC website, and on the Federation’s digital channels: Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok, LinkedIn, and exclusively for the Chinese audience, Douyin and Weibo.