With Three Seconds Left, Janja Garnbret Wins Lead World Cup

Yesterday’s women’s Lead final at the Innsbruck World Cup had one of the most exciting endings to a comp in recent memory. South Korea’s Chaehyun Seo put up a solid performance early in the evening, reaching hold 36. Most of the other competitors fell at a committing dyno sequence halfway up the route, including Austrian Jessica Pilz and Team USA member Annie Sanders.

Ai Mori of Japan climbed second last. She made it through the dyno and after a brief rest, cruised up the final runout crux guarding the chains. She almost slipped at the very top but managed to hold on, clipping the chains with 17 seconds left.

Janja Garnbret was the last athlete to climb, and to secure the gold, she had to top the route. The 25-year-old Slovenian had no real troubles until the final crux. After milking an awkward rest stance for over a minute, she finally blasted through the crux, rested a bit more, and then clutched the ‘Top’ hold, with the the clock ticking towards zero. “She’s gotta make the quickdraw!” shouted commentator Matt Groom. Garnbret clipped the chains with three seconds left, winning her second gold medal of the Innsbruck competition.

The victory marks Garnbret’s 28th Lead World Cup gold medal. Across World Cup and World Championship competitions throughout her career, she’s earned 29 golds, 12 silvers, and 5 bronzes. Making this even more incredible is that she’s won 20 golds in Boulder comps as well. She’s this year’s Innsbruck double champ, winning gold in both Boulder and Lead. Heading into the Olympics, she looks unstoppable.

Garnbret was joined on the Innsbruck podium by Mori in second and Seo in third. Pilz took fourth place. It’s interesting to note that all top four competitors will be participating in the Paris Olympics next month. See below for the full results as well as a link for where to watch a replay. You can read about the men’s Lead finals here.

Final Results

1. Janja Garnbret [SLO] TOP
2. Ai Mori [JPN] TOP
3. Chaehyun Seo [KOR] 36
4. Jessica Pilz [AUT] 22+
5. Aleksandra Totkova [BUL] 22+
6. Annie Sanders [USA] 22+
7. Mattea Pötzi [AUT] 22+
8. Yuetong Zhang [CHN] 21+