Brooke Raboutou Earns Gold at Olympic Qualifier Series

With tenacity and grit, Brooke Raboutou won gold over the weekend at the women’s Boulder & Lead Olympic Qualifier Series event in Shanghai, China. She placed first in the Boulder round, where she was the only woman to top three of the four problems. In the Lead round she placed fourth, accumulating enough points to earn her spot atop the podium. She was joined on the podium by Chaehyun Seo of South Korea in second and Great Britain’s Erin McNeice in third.

“It means a lot,” said Raboutou after her first-place finish. “I have been working really, really hard. I have big goals and dreams and I was really proud of the climbing I put in today. I still feel like I have more to give, which is exciting. I really just climbed for myself, which is when I climb my best. I was able to get in a really good mindset and enjoy myself but with determination. It felt really good to try really hard and show what I am capable of.

“I went through some really hard times last year and I learned so much from them. Honestly, I am grateful for them because I feel like they are making me stronger today, both physically and especially mentally. Nobody wants the hard times and the challenging times but that’s just part of my path and journey. So, I am proud of what I am doing.”

Eight climbers faced off in the women’s Boulder & Lead final. The Boulder round came first, and it was a fun one, with a series of excellent problems. Raboutou was the only climber to top three of the four problems. She was also the only competitor to reach all four high zones, leaving her well ahead of her competitors moving into the Lead round. With all her tops and high zones, Raboutou earned 83.8 points in the Boulder round. Her closest competitor was McNeice who earned 59.7 points with two zones and two high zones.

When Raboutou took to the wall in the Lead final, the comp was hers to lose. Her climbing started out nice and flowy, and it really looked like the comp was hers. Suddenly she climbed a little too high before making a clip, leaving her stuck. If she kept climbing, she wouldn’t gain any more points. If she tried to downclimb, she’d likely fall. “Emergency for Brooke Raboutou!” called commentator Matt Groom.

Raboutou stayed calm, circling back and forth and resting on a series of holds, even kicking the quickdraw with her foot to get it swinging towards her. After nearly a minute of continuous re-adjustments, she finally made the clip and then kept on climbing. She ended up climbing past three more holds, before falling due to fatigue. She earned 57.1 points in Lead, 140.9 points across the two rounds.

Seo, a lead climbing specialist and the final climber of the night, was up next. She climbed brilliantly, but ended up falling after gathering 80.1 points, considerably higher on the wall the Raboutou. Unfortunately for Seo, it was not enough, as after a lackluster bouldering round earlier in the day, she was left with 134.3 points overall. Raboutou’s clipping fight appeared to have paid off. She likely gained an additional 9.1 points after making that clip, enough to earn gold.

Boulder Final Results

1. Brooke Raboutou [USA] (T3 HZ4 LZ4 10 16 16)
2. Erin McNeice [GBR] (T2 HZ2 LZ4 2 2 7)
3. Zhilu Luo [CHN] (T2 HZ2 LZ4 2 2 7)
4. Miho Nonaka [JPN] (T2 HZ2 LZ4 3 3 8)
5. Futaba Ito [JPN] (T2 HZ2 LZ4 2 2 10)
6. Ievgeniia Kazbekova [UKR] (T2 HZ2 LZ4 6 6 13)
7. Chaehyun Seo [KOR] (T2 HZ2 LZ3 2 2 11)
8. Zélia Avezou [FRA] (T1 HZ1 LZ4 2 2 10)

Lead Final Results

1. Chaehyun Seo [KOR] (43+)
2. Erin McNeice [GBR] (40+)
3. Miho Nonaka [JPN] (40+)
4. Brooke Raboutou [USA] (37+)
5. Futaba Ito [JPN] (37+)
6. Zélia Avezou [FRA] (37+)
7. Ievgeniia Kazbekova [UKR] (34+)
8. Zhilu Luo [CHN] (31+)

Combined Final Results

1. Brooke Raboutou [USA] (140.9)
2. Chaehyun Seo [KOR] (134.3)
3. Erin McNeice [GBR] (127.8)
4. Miho Nonaka [JPN] (127.7)
5. Futaba Ito [JPN] (116.5)
6. Ievgeniia Kazbekova [UKR] (107.2)
7. Zhilu Luo [CHN] (98.8)
8. Zélia Avezou [FRA] (96.5)

OQS Points System

Every athlete that competed in Shanghai earned points based on their final standing. These points will be combined with the points they earn at next month’s Budapest OQS event to determine whether they earn their spot to compete in the Olympics.

At each OQS event, an athlete earns 50 points if they place first, 45 points if they place second, 41 points if they place third, 38 points if they place 4th, and 36 points if they place fifth. From sixth place onwards, athletes are awarded the same amount of points minus one from the place above them. For example, a climber gets 35 points for sixth, 34 points for seventh, and 33 points for eighth.

Raboutou therefore earned 50 points in Shanghai, Seo earned 45, and McNeice 41. This puts the three climbers in an excellent position moving in to the Budapest OQS next month. At the end of the Budapest event, Budapest and Shanghai points will be summed together to reach a final score and determine who moves through to the Olympics.

To learn more about the Olympic Qualifier Series – the format, the competitors, and the points system – read our in-depth explainer here. The women’s Shanghai OQS Boulder final replay can be watched here. The women’s Shanghai OQS Lead final replay can be watched here.