Coming off a season that has already brought growth and lessons in equal measure, Alexander Waller of the USA is hoping to bring it all together in Prague, Czechia, where this year’s fourth Boulder World Cup competition is scheduled from 6 to 8 June.

After reaching the men’s semi-final at the opening event of 2025 in Keqiao, China, Waller narrowly missed out on progression in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, and is now aiming to set a new personal best World Cup result.

“I was happy to make the semifinal in Keqiao, but my result was lackluster to say the least,” said Waller. “The Salt Lake World Cup had a difficult qualification round for me, and small mistakes cost me a spot in the next round.

“Fortunately, as I do not have a vast amount of World Cup experience I am able to learn a lot throughout every round, and I know I’ll be able to apply that kewfound knowledge in the future. For Prague, I would love to be back in the semi-final and ideally improve upon my best previous placement of 12th.”

Waller will be one of the 92 athletes from 40 nations on the starting list in Prague, but he’ll also be among the few sharing a unique moment in sport history: the final Boulder World Cup appearance of Czech climbing legend Adam Ondra.

“It’s special to be able to compete at Ondra’s last World Cup, he’s someone I’ve looked up to since I was a little kid and being able to share the last stage as a fellow competitor is pretty cool,” he said.

The stop in Prague will also mark the end of Waller’s international season for the time being, as he returns home to the USA for academic commitments.

“I return to Salt Lake on Sunday afternoon, unfortunately, I have an internship starting on the 9th so I will not be able to compete at Bern or Innsbruck,” he explained. “As for Seoul, I am uncertain of the status for team selection. I plan on spending the summer training in preparation for Seoul if I am chosen.”

Also registered to compete in Prague are Japan’s Anraku Sorato – winner of the three previous men’s Boulder competitions in Keqiao; Curitiba, Brazil; and Salt Lake City – and Lee Dohyun of South Korea – gold medallist at the two previous World Cups held in Prague in 2023 and 2024.

In the women’s event, World Cup Ranking leader Oriane Bertone of France will try to jump on the first step of the Boulder podium for the first time this season, after collecting two silvers and a fourth place in her three previous starts.

USA’s Annie Sanders and Japan’s Nakamura Mao – gold medallists at Keqiao 2025 and Salt Lake City 2025, respectively – are also set to compete in women’s Boulder.

SCHEDULE

The schedule of the Boulder medal events in Prague is as follows:

Friday, 6 June:
9:00 – Men’s Boulder qualification
16:00 – Women’s Boulder qualification

Saturday, 7 June:
12:00 – Men’s Boulder semi-final
18:30 – Men’s Boulder final

Sunday, 8 June:
12:00 – Women’s Boulder semi-final
18:30 – Women’s Boulder final

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