The European Climbing Championships ended yesterday evening in Villars. After his gold medal in the lead, the Swiss climber Sascha Lehmann followed up with silver in the combination. His team-mate Jonas Utelli completed the Boulder&Lead podium as third best.
At the end of the European Sport Climbing Championships shine in Villars-sur-Ollon Sascha Lehmann and Jonas Utelli in the combination final and won the silver and bronze medals. They were only beaten by the French Sam Avezou.
In the combination final, Jonas Utelli and Sascha Lehmann finished in 5th and 7th place after the bouldering round before they competed in their final showpiece discipline, lead. "I got into the competition surprisingly well and I really enjoyed bouldering," said Jonas Utelli after his performance.
I knew I had nothing to lose and had to collect my points somehow. Luckily I managed to do that and then I was able to use my strengths in lead climbing.
Jonas Utelli
And how he did it! In the final route, the 20-year-old, who was competing in an elite European Championship for the first time, set a new record and temporarily took the lead.
The second-to-last finalist was teammate Sascha Lehmann, who was crowned Lead European Champion yesterday. And today, too, the 26-year-old impressed with his form and climbed two moves further than Utelli.
High-flyer Sam Avezou prevents Swiss double victory
Only Sam Avezou was the last athlete to prevent the Swiss double victory. The Frenchman climbed to European Championship gold in bouldering, silver in lead in Villars and also finished the bouldering round in the combination final in first place.
In the decisive final route, he did not reach Lehmann's best mark and climbed half a move less than Utelli. But in the final reckoning, he scored more points than the two Swiss and thus snatched the victory.
«A boyhood dream has come true»
Sascha Lehmann and Jonas Utelli were extremely happy about their silver and bronze medals. "It is indescribable to be standing here on the podium with Sascha. I will never forget this experience."
Especially after his fourth place in the lead discipline yesterday, today's bronze medal means a conciliatory end to the European Championships for Jonas Utelli. "Yesterday was a big disappointment because I really wanted to be on the podium with Sascha. It was our dream to be there together in the lead."
The fact that we have now managed to do it together makes me even happier – a boyhood dream has come true.
Sascha Lehmann
For silver medalist Sascha Lehmann, the shared podium also had a high emotional value: "We train together so often and push each other. Being able to celebrate these medals together today is simply wonderful."
Laura Rogora also wins the combined final at the European Championships
The women’s Boulder&Lead final showed a similar picture to the Lead discipline: The Italian Laura Rogora won the duel against Ievgenia Kazbekova While the Dutchwoman Lynn Van der Meer completed the podium in the lead, it was the Frenchwoman Zelia Avezou, who won the bronze medal with a clear point lead over fourth-placed Sara Copar.
Laura Rogora was still in fifth place after the bouldering final, but was able to make up enough points for the overall victory with a personal best of 50+ in her favorite discipline, Lead.
Ukrainian Ievgeniia Kazbekova showed a consistently strong performance with second place in bouldering and third place in lead, which earned her the silver medal in the overall ranking.
After the boulder final, Zélia Avezou was a good five points behind second-placed Kazbekova. Despite her better performance in the lead, it was not enough for her to push her competitor into second place. In the end, there was only one point between the silver and bronze medal winners.
French dominate bouldering
In the women's bouldering final on Friday evening, Frenchwoman Nailé Meignan won after a very close and exciting competition that kept the spectators enthralled until the last minute. Meignan secured the gold medal with a final score of three tops and four zones.
This meant she narrowly beat her closest competitor, Ayala Kerem from Israel. She came very close to the fourth and decisive problem that could have secured her the title. Kerem also had three tops and four zones, but two top attempts more than Meignan.
Bronze went to another French climber: Agathe Calliet, also with three tops and four zones, but with an even higher number of attempts.
In the men's event, Frenchman Sam Avezou took the gold medal in the men's final after an intense competition. Avezou, who had just competed in the Olympic Games, showed remarkable consistency and composure. With a final score of two tops and four zones, he secured victory in a thrilling and difficult final.
The men's bouldering podium was completed by two British climbers: Maximillian Milne and Dayan Akhtar. Both had the same number of points as Avezou but a higher number of attempts.
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Credits: Text SAC & IFSC, Cover photo: SAC / Romy Streit