The world's best climbers head for Seoul for second stage of sport climbing World Cup
The action this weekend focuses on boulder and speed as Republic of Korea hosts leg two of this season's sport climbing World Cup from 6 to 8 May
Sport Climbing
After April's first round in Meiringen, Switzerland, the sport climbing World Cup is moving to the Jungnang Sport ClimbingStadium in Seoul, Republic of Korea where the action will focus on boulder and speed.
While the season is still in its infancy, some familiar faces have shown imperious form, with Slovenia's Olympic champion Janja Garnbret winning the first round of the women's boulder competition in a dominant display and five-time World Cup winner Narasaki Tomoa winning the men's.
Find out everything you need to know about the competition below.
What happened in the first round of the World Cup?
Picking up exactly where she left off at last year's Olympic Games in Tokyo, Slovenia's Tokyo 2020 gold medallist Janja Garnbret once again proved herself to be a cut above the rest with a dominant boulder win in Meiringen.
After completing four out of five boulders at the first attempt, the 23-year-old secured the 32nd World Cup gold of her career. However, she will not compete in Republic of Korea, having decided to take some time off with the next Olympic Games in Paris already in her thoughts.
“I’ve decided to skip the Boulder season this year," she said after her win. "The Olympics last year were a pretty hard take on physical and mental preparation, so I feel that I need a little time off from comps and this year is the perfect year to do that. I already have Paris in mind!”
The silver medal in the women's competition went to the USA's 20-year-old rising star Natalia Grossman who is one to watch in Seoul, with Switzerland's Andrea Kumin taking bronze in front of her home crowd.
The men's competition saw a spectacular comeback victory from Japan's Narasaki Tomoa, who rose from sixth to first in the table to win gold. Teammate Ogata Yoshiyuki made it a Japanese 1-2 with France's 17-year-old Mejdi Schalck taking third.
Narasaki is a two-time boulder world champion and will be hoping to add to the five World Cup wins he now has to his name when the action moves to Seoul this weekend.
What is the competition format in Seoul?
The sport climbing World Cup meet in Seoul will feature both boulder and speed competitions. Boulder involves climbing on low, short routes and athletes will not have the support of a safety rope. Speed, by contrast, sees climbers race against the clock, navigating the course without the help of pre-placed anchor points above them.
During Tokyo 2020, athletes competed in a combined format that included boulder, lead and speed. However, competition format changes for Paris 2024 mean there will now be two different competitions, each with its own medallists. Speed will be a competition in and of its own, with lead and boulder combined to make up the other competition.
Athletes to watch out for in Seoul
In the absence of Garnbret, keep an eye on the Team USA contingent in the boulder competition, including last round's silver medallist Grossman and the talented Brooke Raboutou. Serbia's Stasa Gejo currently sits third in the world ranking and will be worth keeping a close eye on in Seoul.
Japanese athletes occupy the top three places in the men's ranking, with Kokoro Fujii out ahead of the first-round winner and silver medallist Narasaki Tomoa and Ogata Yoshiyuki.
The women's speed competition sees Poland's Natalia Kalucka top of the rankings. Also look out for her compatriot Aleksandra Miroslaw and the USA's Emma Hunt.
In the men's competition, Indonesia's Leonardo Veddriq is the current world record holder in the discipline, having set the mark in an extraordinary face-off with compatriot Kiromal Katibin last October in Utah. He will face stiff competition from the USA's John Brosler and the silver medallist at the last World Championships, Spain's Erik Moya Cardona.
READ MORE: World record tumbles at speed climbing World Cup event
Schedule for sport climbing World Cup in Seoul
Friday, 6 May:
12:15 PM Men's then Women's Speed qualifications
8:00 PM Men's Then Women's Speed finals
Saturday, 7 May:
9:00 AM Women's Boulder qualification
3:30 PM Men's Boulder qualification
Sunday, 8 May:
11:00 AM Men's and Women's Boulder semifinals
5:00 PM Women's Boulder final
Followed by Men's Boulder final