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World Cup - Sheffield - Full ReportPhotos

© Jack Geldard / UKC

Adam Ondra took first place in the boulder WC in Sheffield in 2010. He topped out on all the final problems.  © Jack Geldard / UKC
Adam Ondra took first place in the boulder WC in Sheffield in 2010. He topped out on all the final problems.
© Jack Geldard / UKC

Men’s podium: 1st Adam Ondra (Czech), 2nd Cedric Lachat (Swiss) and 3rd Mykhaylo Shalagin (Ukraine)  © Keith Sharples Photography
Men’s podium: 1st Adam Ondra (Czech), 2nd Cedric Lachat (Swiss) and 3rd Mykhaylo Shalagin (Ukraine)
© Keith Sharples Photography
Sheffield has just hosted the latest round of the Bouldering World Cup. The competition was a roaring success, with the world's top climbers battling it out on some hideous problems. Over twenty thousand people attended the Cliff Hanger event in Millhouses Park, giving the whole weekend a huge buzz and excitement.

The British Bouldering Team climbed phenomenally well in the qualifying round on Saturday, with man of the moment Stew Watson and team mate Gaz Parry both qualifying in joint first place. Also making it through to the semi finals were Ned Feehally, Mina Leslie-Wujastyk, Shauna Coxsey, Leah Crane and Diane Merrick.

The semi final problems were tough, with only Adam Ondra and Guillaume Glairon Mondet managing to top three of the four problems in the men's. The women faired slightly better, with Natalija Gros, Akiyo Noguci, Alex Johnson and Chloe Graftiaux all completing every problem in the semi finals.

None of the Brits made it through to the finals, but the atmosphere was still electric and a huge crowd gathered to see the final twelve athletes try their luck.

The final round was a close run competition, with both Adam Ondra (CZE) and Cedric Lachat (SUI) topping out all the problems in the men's comp and Chloe Graftiaux, Alex Johnson and Akiyo Noguci topping out all the problems in the women's.

It came down to how many attempts it had taken the climbers to succeed, and Ondra was well ahead of the pack - showing just why he is considered to be the best climber in the world. In the women's only one try separated winner Chloe Graftiaux and runner up Alex Johnson though, a real nail-biting finish.

The petite Slovenian Natalja Gros, although looking very strong in the semi finals, seemed to be stretched out to her limit on some of the final problems, in contrast to the tall frame of Alex Johnson from the USA. It was a real magnifying glass on how different body shapes and sizes can force different sequences and moves.

Women’s podium: 1st Chole Graftiaux (centre), 2nd Alex Johnson (left) and 3rd Akiyo Noguchi (right)  © Jack Geldard / UKC
Women’s podium: 1st Chole Graftiaux (centre), 2nd Alex Johnson (left) and 3rd Akiyo Noguchi (right)
© Jack Geldard / UKC

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Stew Watson coming oh-so close to topping out a semi final problem in the Sheffield round of the World Cup 2010
© Jack Geldard / UKC

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Akiyo Noguchi topping out on a semi-final problem…
© Keith Sharples Photography
The top 15 results were:

Women

1 Graftiaux Chloé BEL
2 Johnson Alex USA
3 Noguchi Akiyo JPN
4 Gros Natalija SLO
5 Wurm Juliane GER
6 Abramchuk Yulia RUS
7 Lavarda Jenny ITA
8 AVEZOU Cecile FRA
9 Stöhr Anna AUT
10 Ansade Maud FRA
11 Le Neve Melissa FRA
12 Leslie- Wujastyk Mina GBR
13 Markovic Mina SLO
14 Coxsey Shauna GBR
15 Bacher Barbara AUT

Men

1 Ondra Adam   CZE        
2 Lachat Cédric   SUI        
3 Shalagin Mykhaylo   UKR        
4 Glairon Mondet Guillaume   FRA        
5 Gelmanov Rustam   RUS        
6 Hori Tsukuru   JPN        
7 McColl Sean   CAN        
8 Becan Klemen   SLO        
9 Danker Stefan   GER        
10 Fischhuber Kilian   AUT        
11 Jubes Angarita Marco Antonio   ESP        
12 Comina Fabien   FRA        
13 Watson Stewart   GBR        
14 Parry Gareth   GBR        
15 Rubtsov Alexey   RUS        

The Cliff Hanger event itself was the busiest it has ever been, with over twenty thousand people through the gates. event organiser Matt Heason said:

"What a weekend! The weather held out, numbers were up on last year which is great as we held a world cup round for the first time, and the Adam Ondra phenomenon came to town. Full marks to the route setting team who, year after year, deliver a nail biting comp. Also a great big thumbs up to the guys at Alpkit for the amazing Shake Out."

PHOTO GALLERY: Cliff Hanger and the World Cup

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The huge tent that housed the competition wall at Cliff Hanger in Sheffield
© Jack Geldard / UKC
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Mina Leslie-Wujastyk was the top UK woman - coming in 12th place.
© Jack Geldard / UKC
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Stew Watson qualified in to the semi finals in joint first place on Saturday, but missed out on a place in the finals.
© Jack Geldard / UKC
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Leah Crane finished in 18th place.
© Jack Geldard / UKC
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Gaz Parry also qualified in to the semi finals in joint first place on Saturday, but missed out on a place in the finals.
© Jack Geldard / UKC
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British team member Keith Bradbury in the qualifiers. Keith came 51st.
© Jack Geldard / UKC
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British team member Ned Feehally climbing his way to 19th place.
© Jack Geldard / UKC

Stewart Watson competing in Sheffield.  © Keith Sharples Photography
Stewart Watson competing in Sheffield.
© Keith Sharples Photography
Dave Barrans coming 28th in the Sheffield round of the 2010 bouldering world cup.  © Jack Geldard / UKC
Dave Barrans coming 28th in the Sheffield round of the 2010 bouldering world cup.
© Jack Geldard / UKC

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At least the Brits won the Blox 'Hang the minging sloper' competition! 39 seconds and counting!
© Jack Geldard / UKC
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Dan Varian of Beastmaker was judging the Crag X pull up competition. 55 (ish) in a minute was the record.
© Jack Geldard / UKC
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The Blox stand gave away free T Shirts with every beer - or was it the other way around?
© Jack Geldard / UKC
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Alpkit not only organised the 'Big Shake Out' but they had a huge stand at Cliffhanger too.
© Jack Geldard / UKC
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The Crag X climbing stand had bargains all day and was packed out.
© Jack Geldard / UKC
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There were various kids climbing walls and the one from The Edge climbing wall in Sheffield was super busy.
© Jack Geldard / UKC

LINKS:

Extra thanks go to Keith Sharples for letting UKC use some of his excellent photographs of the competition.


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6 Jul, 2010
Good to see the Japanese kicking arse. I've seen Akiyo climb at a gym I go to a couple of times. Always a pleasure to watch.
7 Jul, 2010
Photos from StragglerCam! http://blue-straggler.net/Cliffhanger_2010/ Bit grainy, bit blurred, some ropey focusing...because I was stuck at the back with a very very old digi camera complete with joyous screen lag. Excuses excuses...
7 Jul, 2010
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