Two teenage boulderers took center stage in Shaoxing, China, for the first IFSC Climbing World Cup round of 2025.
17-year-old American Annie Sanders continued her impressive form from last season's competition, with a dominant display to claim gold in women's bouldering before Japan's Sorato Anraku secured victory in the men's competition.
Texas native Sanders breezed through the qualification and semi-final rounds before building an insurmountable 9.8-point margin in the final.
Following her victory, Sanders told UK Climbing: "I'm pretty excited, honestly.
"I definitely wasn't expecting it, especially after the first boulder, where I was frustrated and pretty much not getting anywhere on the second boulder."
She was joined on the podium by France's Oriane Bertone and Erin McNeice of Great Britain.
Bertone enjoyed a consistent competition and led throughout the qualification and semi-final stages, while 21-year-old McNeice matched her previous World Cup bouldering position in third.
Japanese climbers dominated the men's competition, with first, third, and fourth place finishers.
As viewers have come to expect, teenage sensation Sorato Anraku once again topped the podium with a near-perfect score of 99.7. Anraku breezed last year's bouldering competition, combining power and precision to score over 500 more points than the second-placed finisher.
It wasn't quite as easy for the 18-year-old in Shaoxing, as South Korea's Dohyun Lee nearly pipped him with an exquisite score of 99.3. Japan's Meichi Narasaki rounded off the leaderboard with a consistent performance throughout.
"I had a good time at this comp," Anraku told UK Climbing.
"I really enjoyed the problems."
The weekend's competition was the first of 14 different World Cup stages that will be held across the globe and throughout the year.
Points from each competition are tallied up, and climbers are ranked on separate leaderboards for bouldering, speed climbing, and lead climbing. These rankings decide the eventual world champions for each discipline.
The next World Cup round will be held in just a matter of days in Wujain, China. From April 25 to 27, the world's best speed and lead climbers will have the chance to claim their first medals of the season.
Eager to catch the action? Check out our guide to how to watch the IFSC Climbing World Cup on TV or stream it online.
We'll be keeping a close eye on the competition here at Advnture, so make sure to check back for reaction after every round.
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