Omasa Ryo (Photo World Climbing)
Emma Hunt of the USA and Omasa Ryo of Japan claimed the women’s and men’s Speed titles respectively at the World Climbing Series Chongqing, delivering two thrilling finals on the opening day of the event.
One week after being eliminated in the quarter-final in Guiyang, China, Hunt returned to the top of the podium in Chongqing with a series of consistently fast performances.
The USA climber saved her fastest run for the gold medal race, clocking 6.13 seconds, while also recording two more times below the 6.20-mark: 6.18 in the quarter-final and 6.16 in the semi-final.
China’s Zhang Shaoqin took silver with a new personal best of 6.30, while Italy’s Giulia Randi completed the podium in 6.53 to claim the second medal of her career and season, following her silver at the World Climbing Series Chamonix 2026 last July.
Leslie Adriana Romero Pérez of Spain finished fourth after slipping early in the medal race and being unable to recover, stopping the clock at 8.04.
Hunt was pleased to put the disappointment of Guiyang behind her and arrive at the final event with a renewed mindset.
She said: “I’m feeling really good, very excited, and very tired! I’m really happy to have fine-tuned some mental issues that were going on in Guiyang. Also, I think physically I felt better at this competition. It’s a hard one coming exactly 12 hours opposite of where I live, so I’m really happy to have put it together.”
The men’s Speed title went to Japan’s Omasa Ryo, who claimed his first World Climbing gold after six previous podium finishes.
Omasa saved his two fastest runs for the business end of the competition, clocking 4.78 seconds in the final to defeat home favourite Zhao Yicheng. The Chinese climber slipped halfway through his climb and had to settle for bronze despite producing three impressive runs earlier in the competition, with times of 4.80, 4.71 and 4.67.
Germany’s Leander Carmanns took silver in 4.90, earning his second World Climbing medal and his second in China after winning silver in Guiyang in 2025. China’s Li Xu finished fourth after stopping the clock at 6.35.
For Omasa, the long-awaited victory came just before he heads to the Asian Games: “I’m really happy but I’m also really surprised. It was a tough competition with a lot of fast climbers. Winning my first gold here just before I go to the Asian Games really gives me a lot of confidence for that competition.”
