The international climbing season: what happened in 2015?
Before we jump in at the deep end of a new climbing season, let’s look back at the highlights of 2015!
Speed: Russian domination for the ladies, battle of the Titans for the men
Two Russian women were ‘imperial’ last season. So what’s new? Well, another climber was determined to put her hat in the ring right at the end of the season, and she was the Frenchwoman Anouk JAUBERT. Crowned European champion at Chamonix, she led the race just ahead of the two Russians, Maria KRASAVINA and Iuliia KAPLINA. And it was a nailbiting finish right up to the final seconds of the 2015 season: KAPLINA and JAUBERT were head to head in the final of the last leg at Wujiang (CHN). At stake: whoever won this last race would take the leg and the gold in the overall rankings. The Russian hit the buzzer first at the top of the official route and so it was Iuliaa KAPLINA who was the fastest woman in the world last year.
As for the men, it was all about three climbers: the physically imposing Libor HROZA (CZE) and Danyil BOLDYREV (UKR) and the impressive Chinese climber Qixin ZHONG. And it was ZHONG who outdistanced the other two, having secured the overall title before the last meet of the season.
Bouldering: Asia on top of the world
South Korea and Japan really shone through in bouldering last year. For the women, two Japanese climbers were on the podium at the end of the season, Akiyo NOGUCHI and Miho NONAKA. Only Britain’s Shauna COXSEY could separate the two Japanese girls, who looked like they were going to pull off a one-two. However while NONAKA had a nightmare in the final leg, for COXSEY it was a dream competition, and she slipped into 2nd place in the overall standings. Akiyo NOGUCHI was completely unassailable going into the last final of the season in Munich: with three silver medals and a gold this season, the German leg was the only one where she didn’t make the podium.
On the men’s side, there was also a clear front-runner: the young Korean Jongwon CHON really controlled the whole season in 2015. Adam ONDRA’s misfortunes in Munich, where he missed out on the final, cost him the silver medal in the overall rankings, meaning Jan HOJER (GER) – European Champion 2015 – took 2nd place instead.
Lead: superstars out in front
The stars of modern lead climbing, Mina MARKOVIC and Adam ONDRA shone again last season.
For the men, the competition was very closely fought. There were several candidates vying for the number one slot. The Austrian Jakob SCHUBERT, Slovenia’s Domen SKOFIC, the two Frenchmen Gautier SUPPER and Romain DESGRANGES and, of course, the Czech prodigy Adam ONDRA. Perhaps surprisingly, France’s SUPPER got the best start in the 2015 circuit, taking the lead after the 2nd leg in Briançon. He stayed in pole position right up to the end of the last international date, only to be pipped at the post by Adam ONDRA, who won in Kranj.
On the ladies’ side, Mina MARKOVIC built her overall ranking victory brick by brick right from the start of the season, taking gold at the European Championships in Chamonix and the World Cup leg at Imst, for example. She led the race from start to finish, and took the gold again in the final event at home in Kranj, Slovenia. But make no mistake, the young generation had a lot to say this season too. Jessica PILZ (AUT), Anak VERHOEVEN (BEL) and the youth A climber, Janja GARNBRET (SLO), pushed Mina MARKOVIC hard on quite a few legs in 2015. Will the queen still wear her crown on September 18th?
