Max Milne (Photo World Climbing)
Great Britain’s Max Milne topped the semi-final standings after a confident round of climbing that saw fine margins make the difference at the World Climbing Series Salt Lake City.
The top three climbers from the men’s Boulder semi-final topped three boulders and zoned the other, and that put them above a very bunched up group of 14 climbers that scored in the 69pts range.
Great Britain’s Max Milne was first with 84.9pts after starting his round with two flashed boulders, and that gave him the confidence to carry on the momentum and stay ahead of second placed Rei Kawamata from Japan on 84.4pts and Israel’s Yonatan Katz in third on 84.3pts.
Speaking about his round Milne said: “I think I executed really well. I had no idea what the round was going to be like and how hard. In semi-finals this I’ve made like three finals with just one top and four zones, but here you had to be super focused.
“You have to battle your mind to stay focused and stay calm, not think about the future and the results. You can build it up in your head and think if I don’t do this one I’m going to be out, and I tried to play with that and see what happened.”
Milne is one of the most energetic climbers on the tour often trying to get the crowd involved in his climbing, and that will never change: “Ever since I was a kid getting into climbing I have just loved it, and I try and keep that even now. I don’t want to win and medal at comps not smiling. I want to enjoy everything, the success and the failures.”
No doubt Katz will also be smiling after making the final in just his second World Climbing Series appearance, and Kawamata definitely took a leaf out of Milne’s book screaming wildly every time he topped in the semi-final. The final looks set to be a fun one.
Despite 14 climbers behind the top three scoring in the 69’s, there can be only eight to contest the final, and that meant positions nine to 18 all missed out.
In fourth was France’s Max Bertone who scored 69.9pts. He was ahead of fifth placed Elias Krüger Arriagada of Germany who also scored 69.9pts. After his round the German climber said: “I felt really good today. In iso I felt like I could do a good round. I was locked in, focused and tried to climb smart and I think it worked out pretty well.”
Japan’s Sohta Amagasa was sixth with 69.8pts, and he was joined on the same score by Great Britain’s Dayan Akhtar and Israel’s Or Mark. Akhtar and Mark actually shared seventh spot due to countback, but neither will mind as both made it into the final.
Even with a lot of flashes on Boulder two, climbers like France’s Mejdi Schalck and USA’s Colin Duffy missed out on the final because of their attempts on the other semi-final boulders. If the final is anything like the semi-final, climbers will look to be much cleaner and precise if they want to stay in with a shot at the final Boulder podium of the season and finish on a high.
Women’s series contenders safely through
Chasing a World Climbing Series Boulder title for 2026, the three main players for the accolade are all through to the semi-final.
Great Britain’s Erin McNeice holds a small advantage in the series rankings but is being chased by Australia’s Oce Mackenzie and USA’s Annie Sanders – and all of them made it safely through to the next stage after qualification.
With 94.5pts, McNeice progressed in fourth from the 55 women who started the round with Mackenzie just behind in fifth with 94.2pts and Sanders 12th with 79.7pts.
Leading the way was Oriane Bertone in first with 109.8pts, and although the French climber has an outside shot at the series title, with her three rivals through to the semi-finals and therefore able to pick up more points as the competition goes on, she could see her chance start to fade away. But her chance for a gold medal is firmly in her sights.
Fresh from an Asian Games win, China’s Yuetong Zhang seems to be in good form and was second overall on 109.5pts. Japan’s Melody Sekikawa was third with 94.6pts.
Either side of series contender Sanders was Slovenia’s Jenny Buckley in 11th and teammate Cloe Coscoy in 13th.
Despite making it through with a score of 84.6pts, Buckly believes the scorecard is a bit deceiving: “I’m happy with how I’m climbing and happy with how I feel on the wall, but I don’t think the results show that. But its qualification and I won’t overthink it. The job is done and I’ll see what happens on Sunday.”
Sunday will be the women’s semi-final and final rounds, so Buckley and all the other women will have a day off to prepare. Speaking about the free day Buckley said: “I’ll watch the boys tomorrow and hopefully get inspired by them, but I’ll be in bed early and try to get ready for Sunday.”
With Salt Lake City being the last competition of the season in Boulder, Buckley reflecting on her 2026: “I’m not really happy with how my season has gone but that’s not a big deal, I’ve still got one more comp to show my best.”
With 79.5pts, Coscoy made it through to the next round like Buckley, but also wasn’t fully pleased with her season either like the Slovenian: “I think the season so far has been hard for me having all the events back-to-back but having a break and having my friends in town it feels a bit more relaxed, they don’t care how I do you, we just hang out and they support me and I want to do well. I mean, for me, I think this is going to be the best comp of the season.”
Speaking about her qualification Coscoy said: “The first and the fifth boulders weren’t too hard, I guess. The first I felt a bit shaky, a bit nervous, so I’m happy I managed to get it done, and then the rest of the round was pretty physical.”
When the climbers look at the boulders, they often know which will play to their strengths and which ones will take a little bit more to get done, and Coscoy picked out one in particular she knew she had in her locker: “The fifth boulder was my really my style. It’s the kind of thing I do in warm up. It’s very physical, very decisive, there’s a lot of running and jumping and it just feels like sports. I knew it was one for me.”
Making it through in the final positions of 23rd and 24th were USA’s Nekaia Sanders and France’s Lily Abriat. Sanders especially will be hoping to move up the order and make a final in front of her home crowd to finish off the 2026 Boulder season.
