Tight Semis at the Richmond Olympic Oval
The Richmond Olympic Oval hosted a tight semi-final round for Canada's first North American Cup Series event.
Canada’s first North American Cup Series concluded its Lead portion yesterday at the Richmond Oval. The event began with a tight qualifying round that selected for the top 26 climbers in either gender category.
The day’s semi-final separated the tight-knit field as each athlete climbed higher than the one before. Excluding a few ties at lower rankings, the top eight found perfect separation in the women’s field.
As many of these climbers qualified high in the previous round, spectators waited anxiously as the lower qualified athletes fell lower on the route. Simultaneously, a question remained regarding whether the top women could be separated after the three-way tie of the previous round.
Quebec’s Babette Roy became the first athlete of the final eight to step onto the semi-final matts. Climbing high, Roy moved well through the bottom securing the high point with a hold and a move past the previous record holder.
Her strong result earned her the lead briefly before American Isis Rothfork climbed three holds beyond the Canadian. Concluding her round with a score of 36, the field began to tighten. Rothfork’s teammate Ava Kovtunovich squeaked into Finals on countbacks after tying at 32+ with Ashley Fisher. Progression came in quick succession following this performance.
First, Emi Takashiba showed her strength and climbed into the lead. Becca Frangos followed, falling just below Takashiba. Finally, the last three athletes entered the field. Although they tied in qualifiers, the setters made sure that separation would not occur by time-to-high-point. Instead, they achieved perfect separation.
American’s Quinn Mason and Ella Von Dungen continued their strong competition taking first and second heading into finals. Ontario’s Indiana Chapman fell just short of these athletes ultimately securing third into the final round
In a perfect four-American four-Canadian spread, the women’s category proved exciting for those at the gym and they who tuned in via the Oval TV live stream.
Climbing alongside the women, the men’s category showed an equally enticing semi-final. In some ways, the results proved more difficult to predict. After a relatively low qualifying score heading into semis, American Sergey Lakhno climbed well into the top of the route. Unlike the qualification round, semi-finals appeared difficult. It would not give up easily.
Taking 28+, Lakhno fell into first position. Canadian Ethan Hoffman followed securing second to Finn Battersby by countbacks. As the round progressed, this qualification pushed Battersby out of finals. Lakhno’s teammates Quinn O’Francia and Joe Goodacre climbed as high as Lakhno providing a three-way-American tie at the top of the field.
At 28+, it appeared they had found a crux to the route. American Tim Kang, however, moved through the difficult section falling a few moves later and into first position. He would not hold this place for long as Canadian Sean Faulkner moved just past Kang, earning a plus on that same hold. Faulkner qualified in first for Finals.
Finally, Lucas Uchida and Oscar Baudrand each brought a degree of excitement with their performances. Both have been on outdoor tears and executed well in qualifiers. Uchida secured third into Finals while Buadrand fell surprisingly low at 27+. Still, he earned a ticket for the final round.
Women to Finals
1 – Quinn Mason (USA)
2 – Ella Von Dungen (USA)
3 – Indiana Chapman (CAN)
4 – Emi Takashiba (CAN)
5 – Becca Frangos (CAN)
6 – Isis Rothfork (USA)
7 – Babette Roy (CAN)
8 – Ava Kovtunovich (USA)
Men to Finals
1 – Sean Faulkner (CAN)
2 – Timothy Kang (USA)
3 – Lucas Uchida (CAN)
4 – Joe Goodacre (USA)
5 – Quinn O’francia (USA)
6 – Sergey Lakhno (USA)
7 – Oscar Baudrand (CAN)
8 – Ethan Hoffman (CAN)
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