CHAMONIX, France (Xinhua): Indonesia completed a sweep of the speed climbing titles at the World Climbing Series stop in Chamonix on Saturday, with Desak Made Rita Kusuma Dewi winning the women's event and Veddriq Leonardo capturing the men's crown for his first victory since the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Desak claimed her second consecutive World Climbing Series title after also winning in Krakow last week. She defeated Italy's Giulia Randi in the final with a time of 6.22 seconds to Randi's 6.51, while France's Capucine Viglione earned the first World Climbing Series medal of her career by taking bronze in front of a home crowd.
The women's competition featured several upsets. China's climbers were eliminated in the opening round of the finals, while world record holder Emma Hunt was knocked out in the quarterfinals by Randi, who went on to reach her first World Climbing Series final.
"I'm very happy. Tonight I had the best performance and just enjoyed myself," Desak said. "I'm happy to get this gold for my country and my team. In my mind I always say let's do it and just get the best performance."
Viglione defeated American Isis Rothfork in the bronze-medal race, posting 6.41 seconds to Rothfork's 6.53.
In the men's event, Leonardo completed an emotional return to the top after injury setbacks had limited him since winning Olympic gold in Paris.
The former world record holder advanced through a difficult draw, defeating American Samuel Watson and current world record holder Zhao Yicheng before beating Antasyafi Robby Al Hilmi in an all-Indonesian final with 4.89 seconds.
"I feel great. I feel grateful. It's my first gold medal after the Olympics and it's taken a long time to get it," Leonardo said. "I want to say thank you to everyone, it means a lot."
The bronze medal went to Japan's Ryo Omasa, who edged Zhao in one of the closest races of the competition. Both climbers recorded 4.70 seconds, with Omasa winning by three thousandths of a second, 4.701 to Zhao's 4.704. -- Xinhua
