Olympic Medalists Win Overall 2024 Lead World Cup Season

With the final event this past weekend in Seoul, South Korea, the 2024 IFSC Lead World Cup is a wrap. With stops in Wujiang, Innsbruck, Chamonix, Briançon, Koper, and Seoul, this year’s series saw the world’s best Lead climbers and biggest names in competitive climbing vie for gold on some amazing routes.

In the men’s Lead World Cup season, Toby Roberts of Great Britain came out on top. He won gold in Wujiang and Koper and bronze in Innsbruck and Chamonix, earning him enough points to win the overall series. It’s the 19-year-old’s first time winning an overall World Cup season. He won Olympic gold in Paris in August. He also placed 5th overall in the Boulder World Cup this year.

In women’s, Jessica Pilz placed first overall for the second year in a row. Pilz had a very solid Lead season, winning gold in Seoul and silver in Chamonix and Koper. She also placed fourth in Innsbruck. At the Paris Olympics, she earned bronze. With her overall victory in 2023 and now again in 2024, Pilz is the first Austrian woman to claim the title since Johanna Ernst in 2009. She’s also the first competitor not named Janja Garnbret or Chaehyun Seo to win since 2015.

Team Japan members Shion Omata and Sorato Anraku placed second and third overall in men’s. In the men’s top 10 season-end rankings, six of the spots were held by Team Japan athletes. Pilz was followed by Janja Garnbret and Ai Mori in second and third respectively. Garnbret only only competed in three Lead events this year, but won gold in each.

It was a bit of a strange World Cup year, with many top athletes (including Roberts and Pilz) choosing to focus their efforts on training for the Olympics, skipping many events. But that doesn’t take away from Roberts or Pilz’s performances and victories this season. Across both the men’s and women’s top-10 Lead season rankings, Japan earned eight spots, the United States, France, Slovenia, and Austria each earned two, and Great Britain, Switzerland, South Korea, and Italy each took one spot.

2024 Men’s Lead World Cup Top 10

1. Toby Roberts (3380) [GBR]
2. Shion Omata (2915) [JPN]
3. Sorato Anraku (2845) [JPN]
4. Zento Murashita (2665) [JPN]
5. Sam Avezou (2330) [FRA]
6. Taisei Homma (2140) [JPN]
7. Satone Yoshida (2080) [JPN]
8. Sascha Lehmann (2040) [SUI]
9. Shuta Tanaka (1980) [JPN]
10. Colin Duffy (1765) [USA]

2024 Women’s Lead World Cup Top 10

1. Jessica Pilz (3220) [AUT]
2. Janja Garnbret (3000) [SLO]
3. Ai Mori (2610) [JPN]
4. Chaehyun Seo (2370) [KOR]
5. Mei Kotake (2355) [JPN]
6. Annie Sanders (2330) [USA]
7. Matea Potzi (2315) [AUT]
8. Laura Rogora (2235) [ITA]
9. Zelia Avezou (1625) [FRA]
10. Mia Krampl (1600) [SLO]