Adam Ondra advanced to the final of the Bouldering World Cup in Prague. The home favorite climbed two of the four boulders in the semifinals and placed fifth. He stayed in the top six thanks to the fact that many favorites made mistakes. The medal battle will start in Letná at 20:00.
The semi-final stones that the builders prepared for the competitors did not sit well with Ondra. In the first, he had to change hands a few catches and Ondra didn’t even get into the zone. He gave up a futile effort before the five minute time limit was up to conserve energy.
This paid off for him on the second rock, which he beat on the third attempt. In the third, he had trouble moving quickly into the zone, where he had to cling to two large buildings after jumping. He only managed to do so with six seconds remaining, leaving no time to go any further towards the top.
“That Dolez really suits my style, but unfortunately there is no time left,” complained Ondra.
Only a quick top on the last rock saved his chances of advancing. Just like in qualifying, Ondra showed a strong finish and peaked on the second attempt.
“If I saw a big rock ahead, I would say I couldn’t climb it. I think it’s also very lucky that I tried again,” he commented of the route, where even successful climbers spend a lot more effort.
Ondra placed fourth, but after finishing seventh in his qualifying group he started in the first half of the starting field, so the biggest favorites still had the semifinals ahead of them.
“After practice and the first results, I couldn’t believe it would work,” admits Ondra.
But the best climbers of the qualifiers didn’t do so well. For example, only Yoshijuki Ogata advanced from the Japanese stronghold. In contrast, defending world champion Kokoro Fujii and two-time world champion Tomoa Narasaki were held out in the semifinals.
“It was probably the most dramatic wait to see how it turned out I’ve ever had. I appreciate this result all the more because those boulders were horrible to me,” added Ondra.
In bouldering, which is her weaker discipline, she was the bronze medalist from last year’s European Championships. He last competed at the World Cup in 2021, when he won two races. “I’ve been at the bouldering World Cup for a long time, every year the roulette gets bigger. In the final you already have a fifty percent chance of getting a medal,” he added.
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