Who will claim the World Cup titles in Guiyang?
It would be a laughable understatement to call the men’s and women’s speed climbing title fights close, since both battles are about as tight as they can be heading into the final competition of the season.
On the men’s side, Indonesia star Kiromal Katibin arrives in Guiyang as the man to beat. He’s been a consistent performer for much of the season – including a victory at the weather-affected Denver World Cup – but faltered slightly during his last outing in Chamonix.
With his standing atop the rankings far from secure, he’ll need to keep one eye on the wall, and another on the progress of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 bronze medallist and current world record holder Sam Watson, who remains hot on his tail – a mere 261 points off the lead.
But don’t be mistaken, this seemingly two man show has a third entrant, and his name is Long Jianguo. Sitting just 745 points behind the Indonesian leader, he’ll look to impress on home soil and claim the title in remarkable fashion via the 1,000 points on offer to the winner in Guiyang.
As close as the margins are in the men’s title fight, they may be even closer in the women’s competition. Olympic champion Aleksandra Miroslaw tops the rankings for the time being, but with the Polish team set to skip the season finale, she’s unlikely to remain there when everything’s said and done in Guiyang.
The favourite, then, becomes Team USA’s Emma Hunt, who – despite missing the Bali World Cup – sits just 80 points off the lead.
She’ll need to improve her form in the head-to-head finals to stand any chance of shoring up the title, however, with Indonesia’s Desak Made Rita Kusuma Dewi and home favourite Zhou Yafei more than ready to pounce on a poor showing at the season’s final World Cup.
The question is: will the title come down to a direct knockout final, or will it be won earlier in the competition?