Ryusei Hamada and Meini Li win U16

Ryusei Hamada from Japan and Meini Li from China won all three rounds, securing Japan's 14th medal and China's 16th in the Youth World Championship. Notably, all six boys in the final were from Asia, and only six from Europe, out of which three from Israel, made it to the semifinal, although there are a maximum of three per nation.

Li, who was fourth in Lead, says; ”I am so excited as it’s my first time at a World Championships and the feeling is incredible. After Lead I feel climbed semi-finals so bad, and I had to change my emotions to get better in the Boulder.

The feeling of being at home made me more relaxed and enjoy the competition, and the crowd was incredible all the way through.”

Hamada, who got the silver in Lead, comments; “I’m so happy for the gold, but I didn’t climb well on the first route, and I was disappointed not to make tops on all the boulders. My goal was four tops for the final, but maybe that will have to be for next year now.” Complete results © Richard Aspland/IFSC