Briançon, France is the destination as climbers make their way cross country from Chamonix for the sixth IFSC World Cup of 2024. Starting tomorrow the Speed and Lead athletes will once again fight it out for podium positions and World Cup medals.

The highest city in France, nestled in the Hautes-Alpes, is steeped in climbing and Tour de France history with murals of the great cycling race adorning many walls, and in 2024 there are some similarities between the two events.

Spread over three weeks, the IFSC World Cup has taken a July tour of France - from Chamonix, now to Briançon and finishing in the capital Paris later in the month with the Olympic Games.

Focussing on Briançon, 138 Lead climbers and 102 Speed climbers will once again vie for medals over three days of climbing with Speed in focus on day one, before Lead on day two and three.

At last year’s edition there was no Speed on the menu, but in 2024 the crowds that will be in attendance will have something else to cheer and enjoy.

Coming off a men’s Speed medal winning performance in Chamonix is Spain’s Erik Noya Cardona who will be hoping for a podium repeat and an addition to that bronze medal he won just last week.

Noya Cardona said: “I’m feeling great ahead of this competition, really motivated after my result in Chamonix and I want to keep pushing. I want to try and break the five second barrier and join the four second club very soon. I know it’s ambitious, but I’ll do my best.”

For Noya Cardona and many of the Speed climbers it is a first visit to the French city: “It’s my first time in Briançon and it’s a beautiful place. I think the setting really suits climbing. There’s a lot of nature, green, mountains, the architecture. I love it. I wish they did Speed World Cup’s here before so I could have come earlier.”

China’s Wang Xinshang joined Noya Cardona on the Chamonix podium taking silver and will once again be a rival to the Spaniard. Others looking to make waves in the men’s competition will be Salt Lake City bronze medallist Kevin Amon of Austria and former world record holders Veddriq Leonardo and Kiromal Katibin of Indonesia.

Also from Indonesia, Rajiah Sallsabillah is in Briançon in the women’s competition after securing a Paris 2024 ticket at the recent Olympic Qualifier Series events, as is Noya Cardona’s compatriot and also future Olympian Leslie Adriana Romero Pérez.

In the last hit out before Paris 2024 there is a host of women’s Speed climbers in action. France’s Manon Lebon. Indonesia’s world champion Desak Made Rita Kusuma Dewi. Italy’s Beatrice Colli. There’s even last week’s winner in Chamonix Zhang Shaoqin of China in action in what promises to be a great competition.

For Lead in 2023, Slovenia’s Vita Lukan broke her duck for World Cup gold’s when she stood atop the women’s podium, and last year’s winner is back to her happy place.

Lukan said: “It’s really exciting being back in Briançon as I have really good memories. I made six finals in a row, and it is a special place for me, it has a special place in my heart. I’m really looking forward to the competition.”

Despite happy memories of the city, Lukan’s year hasn’t quite been on the same path: “This whole season has been an emotional rollercoaster. I focussed on the Olympic Qualifier Series and it didn’t work out, so now I don’t feel that much pressure on the World Cup as my shape is maybe not the best now and it is a little hard to refocus on competition. But I felt good in Chamonix and felt I was getting back on track, so we will see what happens in Briançon.”

Some of the names on the registration list Lukan will have to contend with are Austria’s three Chamonix finalists – Jessica Pilz, Mattea Pötzi and Flora Oblasser, a French contingent including Manon Hily and Hélène Janicot, and some strong Asian climbers like South Korea’s Kim Jain and Japan’s Tanii Natsuki.

In the men’s Lead competition last year there were seven Japanese climbers out of the eight available places. With another big showing in Briançon from the team, will we see a repeat? Homma Taisei. Omata Shion. Yoshida Satone. Just three of the ten in attendance from the nation.

Looking to disrupt the Japanese order will be climbers such as Italy’s Stefano Ghisolfi, Spain’s Chamonix finalist Guillermo Peinado Franganillo and soon to be Olympian, Australia’s Campbell Harrison.

Action starts tomorrow – Wednesday 17 July – with Speed qualification at 12:00 (UTC+2) before Speed finals the same day at 20:00.

News and updates about the event 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.