Ainhize Belar Barrutia, who in May did Begi Puntuan (9a), has done Honky Mix (8c+) in Araotz/Oñate.

”After doing Honky Tonky (8c), I decided to try honky mix, which has much more resistance. It is the same route until the last four clips more or less. In the upper part, it adds a hard crossing to the left in which you have to position yourself very well. Then you have to continue with some easier blocks.”

Mickael Mawem is the 2023 sensational Boulder World Champion. The 33-year-old has been competing actively in the World Cup since 2014 without making the podium and in 2023 he has not made it into the final. In the qualification in Bern, he was in big problem but with a top on his 12th attempt on the last boulder, he made it into the semi as #13. The French athlete has previously shown that he is doing the best results when it counts the most. In 2016 he was #4 in the World Championship, in 2019 he won the European Boulder Championship and in the Tokyo Olympics he was #5.

Mejdi Schalck got the silver and confirms that France is the leading nation in Europe. The 19-year-old chose to only participate in the World Cups in 2023, 1 - 1 - 3, in order to prepare for the World Championship, although he had won overall if he just had been #3 in one of the three events he skipped. Lee Dohyun from Korea, #2 in the World Cup in 2023, got the bronze. Sorato Anraku was in the lead after the two first boulders but was fourth in the end as he did not score even a zone on the last two boulders. Nicolai Uznik was fifth and he was actually the only one topping the last boulder and he did it with ease on his second try. Kokoro Fujii completed the final being #6.

Overall, the route setting in all three rounds has been great and all 18 male boulders have been topped. The last boulder in the final had a four-move paddle sequence set up on non-friction holds where the best thing seemed to be having wet fingers instead of chalked-up fingers. Complete results

Mawem commented to IFSC. (c) Lena Drapella
"It‘s a crazy moment. I’ve waited ten years for this. It was my goal to be the best in the world one time in my life. I’ve had a lot of failures, I’ve come back year after year. We have all these strong young guys now. I can’t believe it. It’s just crazy. My favourite moment was the end. Some people say just take pleasure in it, but I work a lot. Every day of the year. I haven’t taken a holiday for ten years. I say to everyone the pleasure will come when I win, and now I’ve won. Yeah the competition is cool, the setting is cool, but the end is the best. I just want to say thank you to all my family. My brother, my mother, my father.”

Janja Garnbret (SLO) was superior in the women’s boulder qualification doing all five problems in just nine tries. Brooke Raboutou (USA) won the second group getting three tops and five zones. Runner-ups in the two groups were Ayala Kerem (ISR) and Zelia Avezou (FRA). (c) Jan Virt/IFSC

Contrary to the first three days of the World Championships in Bern, we saw several sensational results. Miho Nonaka #24, Stasa Gejo #27, Hannah Meul #35 and Chaehyun Seo #55 did all miss the semi and especially Seo needs a very good result in Lead to make it to the Combined semi.

Gabriel Kern, who last month won the Swedish Lead Championship, has done Inshallah (8c+) in Kalymnos, Insta video.

”Inshallah, in my opinion the absolute king line! Featuring a middle-finger-undercling-mono-lockoff, sketchy heel-hooks, mega cut-loosing, and a brutal ending! The route is around 15 meters of pure hard bouldering with no rests. As of now it has five ascents on 8a.nu but, the more accurate number is probably around 10-15.

If anyone is visiting Kalymnos I would highly recommend going to north cape and trying it! There are some draws on it already that you can use if you just want to feel the holds!

My first few tries on the route was in November 2022 but that was cut short since there came a swarm of hornets making the route unclimbable. I came back in Easter 2023 hungry, made progress, but still got shut down. Fast forward to summer 2023, everything was greasy and humid, but that didn't stop my projecting, I perfected every sequence and after a falling on the last hold a few tries in a row I managed to send it. It was either send it or take down the draws.”

Marco Müller, who previously has done eight 9a's, has sent Oblivion (9a) in Gimmelwald.

"The route is a linkup between 'Alpenbitter' and 'Renardo Rules', which creates a traverse with a new crux. I think it took me 2 sessions to do all the moves. The crux is going from a tricky heelhook to a bad 2-finger pocket to another pocket. It is super body tension and body position dependent. (I also couldn't do the original kneebar beta, as my torso is a tiny bit too short.) I then started trying from the ground and could almost always reach the traverse. But the key was to get there fresh in order to get into the right body positions. After multiple sessions, I finally stuck the last crux move and kept it together to the end."

125 men participated in the male Lead qualification and Jakob Schubert (AUT) won group A by getting the highest on both routes. Sam Avezou (FRA) and Sorato Anraku, 16, (JPN) were tied winners in group B. Sean McColl got his best result of the season by being #13, in his 9th World Championships appearance. No other sensational results meaning all big names made it to the semifinal. Interesting is that Japan did not let their #4, 5, 7 and 11 in the overall World Cup participate. Instead, they have probably focused on their athletes having the best chances in the Combined. (c) Lena Drapella/IFSC
Complete results

Sorato Anraku (JPN) started out last in the semi, as he had won the qualification, and sent all four boulders in great style. The 16-year-old seems to be on another level as he has done throughout the whole season. By doing so he kicked out his teammate Yoshiyuki Ogata from the final, who had just sent Adam Ondra (CZE) out of the final. Both of them including also Yannick Flohé (GER), in 9th position, were all very close to sending one more boulder creating a very exciting semifinal.

Olympian Mickael Mawem (FRA), who has not made any finals in the WC in 2023, was runner-up. “They weren’t hard boulders, not hard, not physical, not small holds. You just need to climb well and have good timing and that’s what I think I have, so that’s cool, that’s good.

My goal is qualification for the Olympics and now I am in final so that is good. First step was qualification, second was semi-finals and the third step is a medal.

I’m happy because I think I’m strong mentally for the finish, the hands, for the last move on the slab. I climb a lot on the slab and doing a lot of coordination the last month and I’m happy now, not just because of the result but the way I am climbing.”

Kokoro Fujii (JPN) was third followed by Mejdi Schalck (FRA), Lee Dohyun (KOR) and Nicolai Uznik (AUT). It should be mentioned that Shauna Coxsey did her debut as a commentator and did a very nice job explaining interesting details. Complete results

There were 100 women competing in the Bern Lead qualification today. Janja Garnbret (SLO) won one group by topping both routes in full control. Number one in the other group was Ai Mori (JPN). Three climbers were tied in third; Brooke Raboutou (USA), Laura Rogora (ITA) and Seo Chaehyun (KOR). In total, Slovenia got all their five girls to the semifinal and France four.

Natalia Grossman was #27 and just missed the semifinal. Oriane Bertone, who like Grossman, is one of the favourites to get a medal and an Olympic ticket in the Combined, was 11th. The french comments to IFSC. (c) Jan Virt

“It went pretty well. I wasn’t expecting a lot as I haven’t really been training enough I don’t think to be one of the top ones in Lead. I was hopeful. I really wanted to do well because it is the World Championships and I’ve trained a lot, but I just climbed and it went very well as I happened to be above the bar of 40. I was 40+, and that was a big achievement for me. It’s the first time I think I have done it in a comp. It was not too pumpy, there were some boulder moves, and it was a lot of fun.

I class myself as mainly a boulderer as I train much more in that, but I’m starting to feel much more like a Lead climber now because I’m training a lot. I would say I’m a combined athlete.”