Climbers will make the cross-country journey from Chamonix to Briançon, France, for the sixth IFSC World Cup in 2024. Starting tomorrow, speed and lead athletes will once again be competing for podium places and World Cup medals.
France’s highest city in the Hautes-Alpes region is steeped in mountaineering and Tour de France history, with murals of the great cycle race adorning many of its walls. In 2024, there are some parallels to be drawn between the two events.
The IFSC World Cup toured France for three weeks in July, starting in Chamonix, now Briançon and finishing in the capital Paris at the end of the month with the Olympics.
In Briançon, 138 lead climbers and 102 speed climbers will again compete for medals over three days of climbing, focusing on speed on the first day and lead on the second and third days.
Speed wasn’t on the menu at last year’s tournament, but in 2024 there will be something else for the spectators to cheer and enjoy.
Spain’s Eric Noya Cardona, who won the men’s speed medal in Chamonix, will be hoping to finish on the podium again after winning bronze last week.
Noya Cardona said, “I feel great heading into this competition. I’m really motivated after my result in Chamonix. I want to keep working hard. I want to break the five-second barrier and join the four-second club soon. I know it’s ambitious, but I’ll do my best.”
For Noya Cardona and many of the speed climbers, this is the first visit to the French city. “It’s my first time in Briançon and it’s a beautiful place. I think it’s a really good environment for climbing. There’s a lot of nature, greenery, mountains and architecture. I love it. If the Speed World Cup had been held here before, I would have come earlier.”
China’s Wang Xinshang joined Noya Cardona on the podium in Chamonix, winning silver and once again rivalling Spain. Others looking to make waves in the men’s competition include Austria’s Kevin Amon, who won bronze in Salt Lake City, and former world record holders Vedrick Leonard and Kiromal Katibing of Indonesia.
Fellow Indonesian Razia Sarsabila earned her ticket to Paris 2024 in the recent Olympic Qualification Series and is competing in Briançon in the women’s competition, as is Noya Cardona’s compatriot and future Olympian, Leslie Adriana Romero Pérez.
A number of female speed climbers are in action in the final competition before Paris 2024: France’s Manon Lebon; world champion Desak Made and Rita Kusuma Dewi from Indonesia; and Italy’s Beatrice Colli. Last week’s Chamonix winner, Zhang Xiaoqing from China, will also be competing in what is expected to be a fantastic competition.