Starting this season, new rules will apply to the IFSC Bouldering and Lead World Cups. These will affect the number of participants in semifinals and finals in both disciplines, and the scoring system for bouldering will also change. What's planned – and what are coaches and athletes saying about it?
With changes to its competition rules, the IFSC the rating of the World Cups a little further to the Olympic Combined format The biggest changes affect the Bouldering World Cups, but things won't stay the same in the lead either in the coming season.
8 participants in the final, 24 in the semifinal
To align the bouldering and lead disciplines, 24 athletes will compete in the bouldering semifinals instead of the previous 20. Starting this season, Bouldering World Cups will also always have eight final places instead of the previous six.
According to the IFSC, this change is primarily related to equal opportunities among the participating nations. At lead events, the number of semifinalists will be reduced from 26 to 24.
By increasing the number of places in the bouldering finals, we also want to increase the likelihood that more different nations will be represented in the finals.
IFSC
Sagi Damti, coach of the German bouldering team, does not believe that the change will result in more diverse nations in the final.
More athletes in the semifinals and finals is a good thing, but the effect on diversity is likely to be minimal. The IFSC only increases competition among athletes.
Bouldering trainer Sagi Damti
To ensure there is enough action on the wall, the eight finalists will no longer be on the mat individually as before, but always in pairs - with the exception of the first and last final boulder.
Point system replaces top and zone in bouldering
The other change concerns the scoring in Bouldering World Cups. There, a point system replaces the previous scoring system based on Zone and Top, which means that the IFSC is clearly aligning the World Cups with the Olympic Combined format from Paris.
We want to make it easier to track athletes’ progress in the rankings – even for those who are new to the sport.
The IFSC about the new scoring in bouldering
As in Olympics 2024 A top bouldering challenge is worth 25 points, and a zone is worth 10 points. 0,1 points are deducted from the total score for each attempt.
However, this also means that, for example, three zones in the first attempt (3 x 10 points) will be worth more in total than a single flash with 25 points. The same applies to other constellations in which tops lose importance in the ranking compared to zones.
According to bouldering coach Sagi Damti, the new scoring system primarily means more complexity for coaches at World Cup events. The change could also initially cause confusion for spectators.
We coaches will have to pay more attention to calculations and appeals in the future. Is the new system easier for the audience to understand? I don't think so.
Bouldering trainer Sagi Damti
Until now, in the Bouldering World Cup, a single top – no matter how many attempts – was always considered more than the maximum number of zones that could be reached.
Fairer for athletes, more complicated for coaches
Prior to the changes, the IFSC conducted a multi-year SWOT analysis. Based on this analysis, representatives of the technical and marketing committees, as well as the athletes, developed proposals.
Sagi Damti, coach of the German national bouldering team, is generally positive about the new system. Nevertheless, he believes the 0,1 points deducted per attempt aren't significant enough to separate the field. However, he does see the positive side of the scoring system as a way to increase the consideration of all-rounders.
Zones are now worth significantly more than before, so all-rounders are rewarded more. The system is fairer for athletes, but more complicated for us coaches.
Bouldering trainer Sagi Damti
Overall, it is more difficult to achieve consistently good results in bouldering, says Sagi Damti: "Whether you make it to the finals or onto the podium in bouldering depends much more on route setting than in lead climbing."
The new ranking system "shuffles the deck a bit more," says Damti, but it's not a huge change for the athletes. Yannick Flohé, who will focus more on lead competitions next season, agrees.
Bouldering is always a game of chance anyway. As far as I'm concerned, you can also roll the dice to determine the results.
Yannick Flohe
The new format will be used internationally for the first time at the Bouldering World Cup in Keqiao, China, where the season kickoff will take place from April 18 to 20.
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Credits cover photo: Drapella/Virt/IFSC