The music gets louder, the atmosphere rises – the final of the Boulder World Cup in Brixen was a sporting experience without equal. 6 athletes from 4 nations competed in the final at 7 pm. They all had only one goal, to secure victory on this fifth World Cup stage. But nobody could get past the World Combined Champion Yannick Flohé from Germany on this warm summer evening. He made the stadium glow and crowned himself Boulder King of Brixen with 2 tops and 4 zones. The 21-year-old Englishman Maximillian Milne had to settle for second place. The podium was completed by Japan’s Tomoa Narasaki (2019 Boulder World Champion).
Flohé made the audience shake from the beginning. He had some difficulties on the second boulder. Maximillian Milne, on the other hand, made it to the top right there – to loud cheers from the audience. On the third boulder there was a standing ovation when Flohé reached the top. He was the only one who managed to solve it. “The final went really well,” said a visibly pleased Flohé. “Making the first top gave me a lot of energy. The second one presented some difficulties. Then I was surprised by myself when I managed the third boulder, which actually didn’t suit me at all. On the other hand, I was confident again on the last of the four boulder routes that had to be conquered.” Well and above all determined, the Englishman Milne brings home 2 tops and 3 zones: “It was an intense competition which I enjoyed very much. I don’t even know how I managed to do it today – probably by some strange magic. The audience was great. I have good memories of Brixen, I already won a bronze medal here at the European Youth Championships. To be on the podium today is fantastic.
Japan’s Tomoa Narasaki came third. He fought heart and soul until the end to reach the tops. “It was really difficult today. The boulders were hard, moreover I was still very tired from the semi-final. That’s why I didn’t make it to the top, but I’m still happy,” Narasaki said. The 19-year-old Korean Dohyun Lee slipped to fourth place; he experienced the first final of his career in Brixen. Overall World Cup leader Yoshiyuki Ogata had to settle for fifth place, while Meichi Narasaki finished sixth. The audience could see for themselves the magic of bouldering in Brixen today, which visibly reached the crowd. At around 10pm the lights went out at the Vertical Climbing Centre in Brixen. Even though the first Boulder World Cup in Brixen is now history, great impressions remain: Not only emotions and top sporting performances, but also a successful organisation, thanks to the Alpine Club South Tyrol. Ralf Preindl from the OC is visibly satisfied: “The balance is more than positive. We managed to get hundreds of people excited about this sport and bring them to Brixen”. The former athlete Alexandra Ladurner, who is also part of the organising committee, is more than happy about the positive feedback: “Everything went well. A big thank you goes to the 150 volunteers of the event among them also the young South Tyrolean Leonie Hofer, who made her European Cup debut here in Brixen a month ago”.
