Mohammad Jafari and Alex Puccio Win ABS16!

The American Bouldering Society’s 16th installment of the National Bouldering Championships took place in Madison, Wisconsin.

All of the action was live-streamed thanks to Louder Than 11. For the ninth year in a row, Daniel Woods and Alex Puccio held on to their national champion titles. Woods and Puccio were at the top of their game. The route-setting couldn’t have been better and the commentators gave excellent play by plays.

The biggest surprise of the weekend was men’s winner Mohammad Jafari Mahmodabadi. The oldest competitor at age 31, Mahmodabadi is an Iranian climber few had heard of before the comp.

Woods finished in second, but was the number one American. Last year, Puccio finished second after Julian Wurm, but again, was the number one American.
Alex Johnson finished in second and was climbing impressively well. She always puts on a great show and knows how to get the crowd going. To round off the women’s podium was rock star Angie Payne. Despite being the oldest in her category, she crushed in the finals round. In fourth was Megan Mascarenas who was looking super strong all night.

For the men, Michael O’Rourke, who grew up in Chicago, finished in third. Next was Josh Larson who left everything on the wall.

ABS 16 was one of the best competitions of the year. There were upsets and surprises as some of America’s strongest boulderers gave their best.
Thanks to Louder Than 11 for bringing the action to people all around the world. Can’t wait till the next one.
Watch the Finals: