Samuel Watson and Emma Hunt (Photo World Climbing)
The World Climbing Series Kraków saw Team USA set a new world record to claim the first gold medals in the Speed mixed relay.
The historic day also saw the first-ever finals held on a four-lane wall with Samuel Watson of the USA and Desak Made Rita Kusuma Dewi of Indonesia claiming individual gold medals, while Emma Hunt of the USA became the first woman in history to race below six seconds.
USA BREAKS 11-SECOND BARRIER
Samuel Watson and Emma Hunt capped a remarkable day by becoming the first team in history to break the 11-second barrier, stopping the clock in 10.89 seconds in the gold medal race.
The performance lowered the world and Pan American records for the second time in the finals, after the American pair had already improved both marks to 11.00 in the semi-final.
The victory completed a memorable double for Watson, who had earlier won the men’s Speed title, while Hunt celebrated her second world record of the day after becoming the first woman to race below six seconds on her way to bronze in the individual event.
Antasyafi Robby Al Hilmi and Desak Made Rita Kusuma Dewi of Indonesia 2 claimed silver in 11.30, giving Kusuma Dewi her second medal of the day after winning the women’s individual competition.
“It means a lot to do it on Independence Day. I had to tell her it’s Independence Day, we took it very seriously. That was our best team hype-up moment, so we definitely pulled it off as a team,” said Watson.
“It’s pretty crazy and exciting to have done this on Independence Day… happy Fourth of July!” said Hunt after the victory.
Watson recalled watching the decisive run unfold.
The final race specifically was pretty cool. We had just done the 11.00 in the previous round, we were going pretty relaxed, I was feeling better, managing my skin and that last little bit of adrenaline. I did my run and saw that Emma was already at a point where she was much faster than I usually see her, and I thought: ‘This is going to be a great run!’ To watch her close was incredible.”
China 1, represented by Zhou Yafei and Zhao Yicheng, secured bronze after defeating Indonesia 2’s Raharjati Nursamsa and Rajiah Sallsabillah in the third-place race.
The Chinese pair stopped the clock at 11.17 seconds, setting a new Asian record. It was the fourth time the continental mark had been lowered during the competition, following three successive improvements by Indonesian teams: Robby Al Hilmi and Kusuma Dewi first recorded 11.44, Raharjati Nursamsa and Rajiah Sallsabillah then improved it to 11.42, before Robby Al Hilmi and Kusuma Dewi lowered it again to 11.19 in the semi-finals. Indonesia 1 finished fourth in 11.35.
Europe’s benchmark also fell repeatedly. Italy’s Ludovico Fossali and Giulia Randi first lowered the continental record to 11.93, then improved it to 11.85, before Ukraine’s Polina Khalkevych and Yaroslav Tkach reduced it further to 11.66.
Meanwhile, Watson and Hunt twice rewrote the world and Pan American records, first with 11.00 in the semi-finals before their historic 10.89 in the gold medal race.
WATSON WINS FOUR-LANE DEBUT
The inaugural four-lane final featured an expanded 32-athlete knockout bracket, beginning with eight races in the round of 32 before progressing through quarter-finals, semi-finals, and a single medal race that decided all four final positions simultaneously.
Watson got the rematch he had hoped for against world record holder Zhao Yicheng of China, with the pair lining up alongside Raharjati Nursamsa of Indonesia and Chu Shouhong of China in the decisive medal race.
The American produced the fastest run of the competition, stopping the clock in a lifetime best of 4.60 seconds to secure gold. Zhao followed in 4.69 for silver, while Nursamsa claimed bronze in 4.79. Chu narrowly missed the podium in 4.81, only 0.02 seconds behind the Indonesian.
“I’m feeling great! Obviously the win is a big part of it, but 250 years ago this great American experiment began, the Fourth of July, our Independence Day, and to be here competing on the highest stage, to win and to go head-to-head in these battles with the new format, is great,” Watson said. “I’m pretty happy, but you saw my face at the end, I did want a record, but the one-on-one format maybe is a bit better for that.”
The American also credited recent adjustments to his preparation.
“I’m very happy with my training since the last competition. Some of the improvements that I’ve made gave me a new sense of motivation, a new sense of drive to improve myself on the wall. I’ve copied some of the beta from Zhao Yicheng and I think I outran him on the move that I looked to improve on. That’s definitely a spark of confidence and I want to keep getting better.”
I’ve copied some of the beta from Zhao Yicheng and I think I outran him on the move that I looked to improve on. That’s definitely a spark of confidence and I want to keep getting better.Samuel WATSON (USA)
HUNT MAKES HISTORY BEFORE KUSUMA DEWI PREVAILS
The women’s competition produced arguably the moment of the event before the medals were even decided.
After leading qualification with 6.05 seconds and opening the finals with 6.07 in the eighth-final round, Hunt lowered the world record to 5.99 in her quarter-final, becoming the first woman ever to complete the Speed route in under six seconds.
The medal race then featured three of the four women in history to have raced below 6.10 – Hunt, Aleksandra Mirosław of Poland, and Kusuma Dewi – joined by another home favourite, Natalia Kałucka of Poland.
The anticipated showdown between Hunt and Mirosław was unfortunately denied when the Polish climber false started the opening medal race. In the subsequent re-run, Hunt slipped low on the wall and settled for bronze with 11.37.
Gold ultimately came down to Kusuma Dewi and Kałucka, with the Indonesian prevailing in 6.54 against the Polish’s 6.62 to secure her second career World Climbing Series gold, both won in Kraków.
The result also marked a bittersweet farewell for Mirosław, who had previously announced that Kraków would be her final World Climbing international competition. The Polish star is expected to make one final appearance at the World Climbing Europe Championships in Laval, France, before retiring from competition.
“I’m very happy, this is my second medal in Kraków,” Kusuma Dewi said. “I didn’t expect I could get a gold medal again, all the competitors were very fast. I want to congratulate all of them, and thank my team, my coach, and all the people in Indonesia who supported us.”
The Indonesian also expressed hope that the victory would have an impact beyond the podium.
“Actually, I had some problems before this competition because our government is not supporting us, and thanks to this gold medal I hope they will start to support us.”
I didn’t expect I could get a gold medal again, all the competitors were very fast. I want to congratulate all of them, and thank my team, my coach, and all the people in Indonesia who supported us,”she added.
