IFSC commentator Matt Groom reports from an emotional first round of the IFSC Boulder World Cup season.

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It was time to return to the highest level of competition climbing and jump into the 2023 IFSC season. Last weekend we were back in Hachioji, a buzzing micro-city within the sprawl of Tokyo and in the same arena where the 2019 World Championships - the first Olympic selection event for Tokyo 2020 - took place. 

IFSC competitions are stressful, joyous, heart-in-mouth events, and this year the pressure is increased as we build up to Olympic selection for Paris 2024. There's a long season ahead of us, but we started with a Boulder World Cup. 

With news of the tragic death of Christoph Schweiger (GER), Team Germany wanted to celebrate his life with a podium and Hannah Meul (GER) put herself in a good position to do that, qualifying for the finals in 1st place after an impressive semis round while wearing a black armband and hair ribbon in tribute throughout.

The Women's final was one of the most emotional competitions I've witnessed, and that's saying something! Sadly Team GB couldn't join the party, with Erin McNeice (GBR) getting a 45th place finish, Zoe Peetermans (GBR) in 51st and Jennifer Wood (GBR) in 53rd. 

Each boulder had a totally different style and the difficulty level seemed to have stepped up from last year. It made for a competition with few tops…but it was still hugely entertaining. Most boulders could be climbed with different beta, so we never got bored of watching attempts.

On paper the fight for gold was between Hannah Meul (GER) and Brooke Raboutou (USA). With Janja Garnbret (SLO) taking a break due to a nasty toe injury, and Natalia Grossman (USA) not making finals, we had lost the winners of the last 17 Boulder Word Cups: any athlete who won would be a gold medallist for the first time. 

Hannah drew first blood with a flash of Boulder 1 that had a tricky first jump to a blocked crimp, followed by moves through a large sloper. Brooke wasn't far behind, using her legendary heel-hooking ability to double-hook the sloper on her second attempt. 

Brooke had been working on her coordination moves and jumps in the off-season and had a focused, determined look in her eyes when she walked out onto the mats for the swing and jump of Boulder 2. I have a feeling she was standing backstage in the darkness, reminding herself of the countless hours of training, falling, flinging herself upwards. 

She immediately spotted that the move was better done facing away from the wall, swinging backwards, and spinning in the air. On her first attempt she made the jump, and claimed the Zone. She couldn't finish the boulder, just dropping the last hold after multiple attempts on the second coordination move. Hannah was in the hunt though, and was still in the lead, getting the zone on her second attempt, and also coming tantalisingly close to the top. 

Boulder 3 was where things flipped. It was a weird kind of slab that actually required speed and power to get stood up on bad feet, rather than the usual careful padding upwards. Every athlete struggled…apart from Brooke. She somehow found friction, pressing and pushing her way upwards, an outstanding display of technical climbing that saw her top out in just two attempts. The pressure was on Hannah and for the first time she hesitated, her frustration clear as she tried again and again until the buzzer sounded and she could only get a Zone. 

There was still all to play for on the final climb. This was a vicious power endurance sequence — a tough undertaking at the end of an intense two days of climbing. The route setters had actually tweaked it to make it slightly easier, but it still proved to be a challenge. 

The first moves involved slopers and figuring out how to unlock bomber double toe hooks. In hindsight, campussing through the section might have been easier, but it wasn't obvious. The crowd at this point was fully behind the climbers. There was a family opposite me with two tiny children, both win binoculars as big as their heads, jumping up and down, SCREAMING at the stage. It was a lovely moment amidst the chaos. 

Brooke entered the arena, if she topped…she won. Quinn Midori (USA) my co-commentator, had said before the competition that it would be a dream to interview Brooke on the broadcast if she won. I always get affected by who is with me and I found myself getting more excited and nervous as Quinn's emotions spilt out. Brooke fell on her first attempt, swinging away from the wall as the toes were released. She sat for a while, facing away from the crowd and composed herself.

The second time she released the toes early, slowly finding the balancing point, making the slopers work, and set herself up for the jump to the Zone. She flung herself upwards, momentarily horizontal…and latched onto the zone. From there everyone was fighting tears. I'm not exaggerating — it was as if the entire stadium was crying with her as she topped out, the realisation of her achievement flooding over her. 

Clearly something about Hachioji suits Brooke, since it was where she qualified for Tokyo 2020 in 2019, announcing herself as a rising star on the senior circuit. 

Hannah fought hard but couldn't get the top she needed. However, her silver medal and poignant tribute to Christoph, his athlete pass grasped in her hand and his name written on her arm, as she stood on the podium was a fitting tribute to a climber and compatriot lost.

Anon Matsufuji (JPN) showed the Japanese selectors that she was a contender with a bronze medal — perhaps unexpected, but pure class. The camera caught her sitting on the sofas staring into the distance in dazed shock.

Ayala Kerem (ISR) continues to improve and develop and managed a 4th place finished, followed by the youngest finalist Zhilou Lou (CHN) in 5th and Mia Krampl (SLO) in 6th. 

Moving on to the men's competition, we saw a brutal semi-final round with few tops but interesting boulders. Jim Pope (GBR) made it through to his first Boulder semis, the only male GB athlete to do so, and although he came 20th it was a great start to his season. He's sure to take confidence from this moving forward.

Hannes Van Duysen (BEL) climbed in his first semi-finals, and the whole of his team was dancing in excitement when he made it through. He was strong there as well, showing he's a bit of a slab climbing master with the fastest top of Boulder 2 in two attempts. We saw some new holds from 360 on that climb: volumes with just a thin layer of textured surface that blended into the colour of the no texture areas. It caused a bit of controversy when we featured them on social media…check out the Instagram post and let us know what you think!

Ahead of the men's final, a minute's silence was held in memory of Christoph Schweiger. The finalists stood on the mats with heads bowed as the crowd fell silent.

The final was another low-topping round and Zones were all the more important, with Hannes reaching just enough to secure a brilliant first silver medal.

There were two French climbers, Mejdi Schalck (FRA) and Paul Jenft (FRA), in the finals together and it came down to the last boulder to decide who would win. Mejdi has really developed and progressed from last year. He looks stronger, more composed and seems to have a more mature mentality in 2023. He topped out Boulder 1 in style - the only one to unlock the powerful moves - then sent the slab in three attempts, while Paul couldn't get the first climb, but sent the slab quickly.

Boulder 4 was unique. The wall in Hachioji featured lots of different angles, including an almost 90 degree corner. This allowed the routesetters to create a chimney-like problem, that required a jump to a wide press facing the audience. None of the athletes had seen anything like it before, and although the move was quite simple, none of them could figure it out within the 4 minutes. No one got anywhere near the zone, only Paul came close to getting the sequence, but he took a nasty fall in the process, somersaulting down to land on his back. 

It was a brave move by the routesetters, experimenting and pushing the athletes to learn new moves. Perhaps they should have allowed for a different solution to be possible, but unless they try new things, no one truly learns. 

The gold belonged to Mejdi while Paul had to settle for bronze. In a post-event interview I did with him, he said that he was happy to win, but disappointed not to climb the final problem. He actually went back after the final with the setters' beta in mind and did the chimney jump in trainers, demonstrating how importanta broad movement repertoire and correct route reading is.

The lights faded on the first IFSC competition of the year and we packed up and moved on immediately to South Korea for the first Speed and second Boulder World Cups. It was another wonderful finals, especially for the women, and I hope you can join me soon for more climbing action.

Boulder Men

Boulder Women