TEAM JAPAN DOMINATES BOULDER & LEAD SEMI-FINALS ON HOME TURF
The men’s and women’s Boulder & Lead semi-finals at the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC) World Cup in Morioka, Iwate, Japan, opened the second day of competition at the Iwate Prefectural Sports Park.
Climbing on home turf, Team Japan dominated both events and qualified a total of nine athletes for the finals.
Mori Ai climbed last in the Lead round, and won the loudest applause from the crowd as she secured the top hold, scoring 100.0 points in the discipline, for a total of 169.3. Also representing Japan, Tokyo 2020 Olympian Nonaka Miho placed third with 138.7, Tanii Natsuki took fifth place, and Ito Futaba qualified in seventh position.
Team USA’s Natalia Grossman and Brooke Raboutou were the best non-Japanese climbers in the women’s semi-final, respectively finishing in second place with 148.7 points, and fourth with 138.5.
For the full results of the women’s Boulder & Lead event click here.
Ai Mori of Japan placed first in the women's Boulder & Lead semi-final in Morioka, Iwate, Japan
Photo: Lena Drapella/IFSC
Narasaki Tomoa of Japan confirmed his fantastic form by nailing an almost-perfect Boulder round, worth 99.9 points, then adding a solid performance on the Lead wall and taking first place with 141.9 points.
Four more Japanese climbers qualified for the men’s final: Ogata Yoshiyuki concluded in second place with 132.4 points – 84.4 in the Boulder round, 48.0 in the Lead one – Homma Taisei followed in third place with 128.6, Fujii Kokoro finished sixth, and Kawamata Rei placed seventh.
After ruling the men’s qualification round, Sean Bailey of the USA advanced to the final by taking fourth place. Yannick Flohé of Germany finished in fifth position, and Paul Jenft of France qualified in eighth place.
For the full results of the men’s Boulder & Lead event click here.
Day two will close tonight with the men’s Boulder & Lead final, starting at 6:10 PM (UTC+9:00), while medals in the women’s event will be awarded tomorrow, 22 October, starting at 2:40 PM.
News and updates about the event will be available on the IFSC official website, and on the Federation’s digital channels: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and //www.tiktok.com/@ifsclimbing">TikTok.
