Two-time Olympic champion Janja Garnbret won second place on the boulders in Keqiao, China, where the new season of the World Cup, or rather the new world series in sport climbing, began. The best sports climber in history was thus left without her 50th victory in the World Cup and for the first time since August 2023 she did not win the first place.
Jennifer Buckley as the second Slovenian finalist, finished in eighth place (44.7 points). For the first time, a French woman won the cup Zelia Avezou (84.8), the winner of the European Games in 2023 was only two tenths of a point ahead of Garnbretova (84.6). The third was far behind the Australian woman Mackenzie Ocean (69.6).
Twenty-seven-year-old Janja Garnbret took the longest competitive break ever after the 2024 Olympic year last year and competed in only three venues and won all three. She has been undefeated since the World Championships in Bern on August 12, 2023, when she had to settle for “merely” silver despite the difficulty of winning the final. Before last year’s WC in Seoul, she won her 49th victory in the World Cup on September 6 in Koper in front of her home fans.
Young Jennifer Buckley is satisfied with reaching the final. PHOTO: Blaž Samec/Delo
She became world champion for the first time in 2016, then she brought home at least one medal from every World Cup. At the end of September last year in Seoul, where she became the world champion in difficulty and bouldering, Korošica moved the total number of laurels won at the WC to number 12, ten of which are of the noblest luster.
Also this year only in selected matches
To start the new season, Garnbret was the best in the semi-finals after taking first place in Friday’s Keqiao qualifiers, and then she narrowly missed out on the top step of the podium again in the final. Avezou was a hair better, that was clear even before the last performance of the Slovenian competitor.
We will see Janja Garnbret in Koper again this year. PHOTO: Grega Valančič/PZS
She judged that an unnecessary attempt on the third boulder was too much. “This is a reminder to me that I need to take a closer look at the boulder. The climbing was challenging, which is what we love,” added Garnbret. This year, she will only compete in selected competitions, in addition to Keqiao, she will also compete in difficulty in Wujiang in China in May, in Innsbruck in June in difficulty and boulders, in September in Koper in difficulty and at the end of October in Chile also in difficulty.
