Climbing · Worth knowing

Kazuki Nakata of Japan topped the U17 Men's lead climbing competition at the World Climbing Youth Championship in Arco 2026, scoring 1.87 points. Taketo Saiki from Japan finished second with 2.65 points, followed by fellow Japanese climber Haku Ishida in third place with 3.54 points. The results show strong performances from Japanese competitors, with multiple athletes ranking in the top positions, alongside competitors from South Korea, the Czech Republic, the United States, France, and other nations.

South Korea's youth national sport climbing team won two gold medals, three silver medals, and one bronze medal at the 2026 Arco World Climbing Youth Championship held in Italy from July 18-25. Jung Chan-jin claimed gold in the U19 men's lead event and silver in U19 men's boulder, while Park Beom-jin won gold in U19 men's boulder with a score of 84.5 points, just 0.3 points ahead of Jung Chan-jin. Kim Ha-bin secured silver in U17 women's lead, Lee Ha-yul earned silver in U17 men's lead and bronze in U17 men's boulder, demonstrating South Korea's competitive strength in international youth sport climbing competitions across lead, boulder, and speed disciplines.

Moritz Welt completed his first 9a route, Der heilige Gral in Frankenjura, after previously climbing Masters of the Universe 8c(+) on his second attempt. Markus Jung sent his third 9a, Black Label, also in Frankenjura, describing it as a solid climb that felt harder than the grade. Adam Ondra made progress on his Project Hard 9c in Flatanger by linking the entire route without the first 20 meters. At the Lead World Cup in Chamonix, Marcello Bombardi won the men's final by topping the route fastest against three other climbers who also topped, including Keiichiro Korenaga in second. Janja Garnbret dominated the women's final, cruising with ease and finishing well ahead of Jain Kim in second. However, both finals drew criticism for poor route setting, with unusually high numbers of tops suggesting the routes were too easy—22 men topped both qualification routes, a new IFSC record since 1989, and similar critique applied to the women's competition.

Iacopo Perelli Cazzola completed Coup de Grace (9a) in Sonlerto after seven days of projecting, marking his first ascent at the grade. The 21-year-old Italian climber described the route as one of the most beautiful pitches he's encountered, noting its predominantly endurance-based nature with a physically demanding crux section and quick final moves to avoid pump. He cited injury and persistent wet weather as significant challenges during the project, emphasizing the psychological difficulty of the ascent. Perelli Cazzola, who transitioned from competitive junior climbing on the Italian Cup circuit to alpinism before returning to sport climbing with structured training, views this milestone as part of a long-term progression at the 9a level that prioritizes integrating competition discipline with mountain-developed mental resilience.