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The Men’s Lead National Team is Decided in Atlanta

The US National Team Trials concluded last night with two men making the Top on their final route. The US Team is primed for a strong season

The US Lead National Team Trials concluded yesterday evening at Stone Summit in Atlanta, Georgia. The three round event opened with two qualification routes on Saturday before the semi-final and final rounds on Sunday. The eight men and eight women in finals each fought for one of the six remaining spots, three per gender, on the US National Team. The Team Trials joins US Nationals as a qualifying event for the US National Team.

On the men’s team, US Olympian Nathaniel Coleman and World Cup Gold medalist Sean Bailey have already secured spots. 19-year-old Charlie Osbourne became the first athlete out in the final and pressed his way through the shared opening start of the final route. This start was the first to be shared between both gender categories in USA Climbing’s history. It climbed well through presses up to the first draw.

Osbourne showed incredible control and fought pump the first 34 moves of the route. He climbed largely without mistake, moving through the sloping yellow volumes of the mid-route and up into the black, gibbed volumes of the route’s third quarter. In the end, Osbourne was on route for almost five minutes and fell entering the final, Flathold section of the route.

Isaac Leff followed but was unable to quite match the 34+ score of Osbourne. Leff had a solid competition and will join Osbourne as one to watch at the upcoming North American Cup Series events. Joe Goodacre came out next and also failed to match Osbourne’s high-point. To his credit, this was the fifth consecutive day of competition for the American who competed in each of Sport Climbing’s three disciplines.

The first athlete to push past Osbourne’s high point was Texas local Ellis Ernsberger. This is Ernsberger’s second consecutive year in finals at National Team Trials and, yesterday, the 18-year-old showed that he wanted to compete in this year’s World Cup Series. He scored 42 and became the first athlete to showcase the Flathold section of the route. This position-dependent section appeared pumpy and Ernsberger ultimately lost it on a difficult cross to a screw-on crimp near the top of the wall.

Brian Squire followed, but the 18-year-old could not better his score beyond that of rest of the field. American Olympian Colin Duffy followed and showed that he wanted to win. Climbing slower than we have known him for in the past, the 18-year-old did not appear fatigued by the Top of the route. Instead he held the awful Flathold section and climbed precisely to the finish. He moved dynamically to the final hold. Duffy topped the route and secured first position.

After a strong save in the semi-final, Ross Fulkerson came out onto the final route. Fulkerson looked fresh heading into the Flathold section but moved too quickly into the second Flathold volume and lost his footing. Fulkerson kept a smile but did seem disappointed. Still, he has only improved over this last year and will compete for the US Team in Lead.

With Duffy in the lead, the first-place-qualified National Champion Jesse Grupper would have to Top to win the National Team Trials competition. Although Grupper appeared to move slow through an early dead-point, the precise Lead climber maintained his pacing up into a rest before the final fibreglass section. Resting on the underclings, Grupper continued to the Top with only one minute and 15 seconds left on the clock. Though it seemed like he might time-out, Grupper managed to move quick enough to ultimately Top winning by countbacks.

Although the route looked impressive, this lack of separation between the Top two athletes was a bit of a theme from the competition. In the men’s and women’s semi-final many athletes attained the same scores on their routes.

Result

1 – Jesse Grupper

2 – Colin Duffy

3 – Ellis Ernsberger

4 – Ross Fulkerson

5 – Charlie Osbourne

6 – Joe Goodacre

7 – Brian Squire

8 – Isaac Leff

Lead National Team

Sean Bailey

Nathaniel Coleman

Colin Duffy

Ross Fulkerson

Jesse Grupper

Boulder & Lead National Team

Sean Bailey

Nathaniel Coleman

Colin Duffy

Ben Hanna

Jesse Grupper

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