Hometown Hero Jakob Schubert Wins Innsbruck Lead World Cup

Earlier today, the men’s Lead World Cup final was held in Innsbruck, Austria. Hometown favourite Jakob Schubert came out on top, besting his competitors by several holds high up on the route to win gold. The 33-year-old is the best male Lead comp climber of all time. He holds the record for the most Lead World Cup medals, earning 21 golds, 17 silvers, and 16 bronzes throughout his career. He’s also won four golds, two silvers, and one bronze at the Lead World Championships. He also won bronze at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

In last year’s Lead World Cup circuit, Schubert won bronze in Innsbruck and gold in Villars. He also won gold in Lead and Combined at the World Championships last summer, earning his chance to compete in the Paris Olympics. He crushed on rock last year as well, making the first ascent of B.I.G. 5.15d and repeating Alphane V17. With the two sends, he became the first climber ever to climb both 5.15d and V17.

In Innsbruck today, the men’s final route was a unique one. Confusing holds, a risky dynamic move down low, and a pump, crimpy finish made for some tense, exciting climbing. Alex Megos put up a strong performance early in the evening, falling as he moved towards hold 43. His fellow competitors couldn’t match his highpoint, including Colin Duffy of Team USA who fell at hold 40+ and Great Britain’s Toby Roberts who fell at hold 41+.

Having placed first in the semis, Jakob Schubert was the final climber of the evening. He made a few mistakes on the route and you could tell his pump was building as he neared the 40th hold. Most climbers would have succumbed to the pump but Schubert is a machine. He kept climbing, grabbing crimp after crimp, shaking out here and there, and finally fell at the 45th hold. He had won yet another gold. Born in Innsbruck, Schubert’s hometown crowd went wild.

“Climbing here at home is always different, it’s always special,” said Schubert after his victory. “This route today was exceptionally special because it was such a crazy fight from halfway up. Every move I felt like [I was] going to fall. I feel like I might have not been the best climber today on this route but I think I was the best fighter. That’s what brought me the victory and it was also only possible because of the crowd in my back.”

Megos and Roberts joined Schubert on the podium in second and third respectively. Duffy took fourth place. It’s interesting to note that all top four competitors will be participating in the Paris Olympics next month. One surprising absence from the men’s final in Innsbruck was Sorato Anraku. He didn’t make it through the semi-finals after an unexpected fall, placing 10th overall.

The production of the event was marred by some strange camerawork throughout. Multiple camera angles were used in the live filming, with zoomed-in shots and quick cuts often making it impossible to understand what exactly a climber was doing at a given moment. Many key moments such as falls and highpoints were missed due to the wrong camera angle being chosen.

A series of drones were used for filming, which offered some interesting perspectives that showed the steepness of the wall and the holds the climbers were using. However, the drones were often in unideal locations and rarely held steady. Hopefully at the next World Cup, the production team will decide to rely more on the standard wide shot, which best showcases the climbing. Swooping drone shots and zoom-ins on holds and feet are great for mixing it up now and then, but these artistic flairs should not interrupt the viewing experience.

Final Results

1. Jakob Schubert [AUT] (45)
2. Alex Megos [GER] (42+)
3. Toby Roberts [GBR] (41+)
4. Colin Duffy [USA] (40+)
5. Shuta Tanaka [JPN] (34+)
6. Taisei Homma [JPN] (29)
7. Jonas Utelli [SUI] (29)
8. Tomoa Naraksaki [JPN] (28+)

Lead World Cup Finals – Innsbruck 2024