Adam Ondra, Vita Lukan and Jessica Pilz win Rock Master 2021

KO BOULDER WOMEN
The 34th Arco Rock Master started on Friday morning 11;00am sharp with the KO Boulder. An elimination-competition on four spectacular boulders. Problem #1 was sent immediately by Fanny Gibert from France, Jessica Pilz from Austria, Laura Rogora from Italy and by Britain’s Molly Thompson-Smith. Vita Lukan and Mia Krampl from Slovenia both sent it second go, while Eliska Adamovska from the Czech Republic and Giorgia Tesio both failed and were knocked out.

Gibert, Rogora and Lukan all managed to flash problem #2, while Molly Thompson-Smith was forced to give in after three failed attempts. Pilz and Krampl fought hard, neither of them topping out initally, and both needing all three attempts to reach the top. Pilz qualified for the next round after the judges checked countback, meaning that 2019 winner Mia Krampl and Molly Thomposon-Smith were out.

A few seconds later Pilz, Lukan and Rogora got ready for the last boulder. All three of them, using different beta, reached the top first go. Once again the jury had to resort to countback to deface the winner: Rogora wins followed by Vita Lukan and Jessica Pilz.

KO BOULDER MEN
At 15:00 it was time for the men’s knockout. Ondra immediately made his statement of intent by flashing problem #1, unlike everyone else. Hello countryman Martin Stranik sent it second go, Germany’s Yannick
Flohé third.

Four climbers should have continued after the boulder #2, but the Italians Filip Schenk, Stefano Ghisolfi, Michael Piccolruaz and Ludovico Fossali were all tied with the same score as Domen Skofic. Unexpectedly, all eight climbers qualified for the next, rock solid, problem. Once again no top, not even by Ondra who almost succeeded on his last attempt. Meaning that those qualified for the problem #3 were Ondra, Flohé, Stranik and Schenk, invited at the very last minute to replace Austria’s Uznik, who could not compete due to having been tested positive for COVID.

According to the athletes the fourth problem was the hardest of all but Ondra, with breath-taking moves, topped it first go. Stranik almost photocopied this feat by then fell just below the top. Schenk got close too, but not close enough. Attempts #2 and #3 by both Stranik and Schenk came to nothing, allowing Ondra to claim KO victory.

DUEL
Such excitement at Friday’s Duel, the hallmark event of the Arco Rock Master. The two Italians Stefano Ghisolfi and Michael “Micha” Piccolruaz battled it out for first and second, after Piccolruaz had incredibly sprinted to the top faster than Adam Ondra in the semifinal; the Czech superstar got his own back by winning the Rock Master thanks to his combined score.The women’s event proved thrilling, too: Mia Krampl and Jessica Pilz raced it out for first, with the Slovenian coming up trumps once again after victory in 2019. Local hopes were high for Laura Rogora clinching overall victory after winning the KO Boulder a few hours earlier, but she was overpowered by Krampl. In the small final Vita Lukan beat Rogora for third place.

The competition panned out as follows. Rogora versus Tesio in the quarterfinals, no match, Rogora won. Then, Krampl versus Thompson; just like in the 2019 final Krampl won. Vita Lukan beat Gibert effortlessly; Jessica Pilz showed no pity on emerging star Adamovska. The final duel seems balanced until half height, but then Krampl sped away to hit the buzzer in 1’24’’. Pilz settled for silver.

First men’s quarterfinal: Ondra beat Fossali. Piccolruaz defeated Stranik, Flohè flew past Skofic. And Ghisolfi sped past Schenk.
In the Semi-finals it was a neck-and-neck between Ondra and Piccolruaz; incredibly the Italian beat five-times winner Ondra, who grit his teeth to take bronze against Flohè. So the final duel was between Ghisolfi and Piccolruaz. Ghisolfi has always said he’s had a recurring dream of winning the Rock Master, and on Friday night he got one step closer by winning the Duel.
By combining the scores of the of the KO Boulder and Lead Adam Ondra won his 6th Rock Master trophy, while Vita Lukan and Jessica Pilz tied for first.

This is only the second time that two athletes have won the oldest sport climbing competition in the world, after the ex aequo victory of Martina Cufar and Muriel Sarkany in 2001. For the record, ties in the men’s event have occurred twice in past: in 1998 between Patrick Edlinger and Stefan Glowacz, and in 2001 between Christian Bindhammer, Yuji Hirayama and Tomas Mrazek.The competition proved to be a success; after a year hiatus due to Covid, the 2021 edition was more important than ever. New things are in store for 2022. And the Rai Sport live TV broadcast was the perfect opportunity to reach a larger audience and introduce this sport and the Garda Trentino region of Italy.

KO Boulder Contest - Women
1. Laura Rogora ITA; 2. Vita Lukan SLO; 3. Jessica Pilz AUT; 4. Fanny Gibert FRA; 5. Mia Krampl SLO; 6. Molly Thompson-Smith GBR; 7. Giorgia Tesio ITA; 8. Eliska Adamovska CZE

KO Boulder Contest – Men
1. Adam Ondra (CZE); 2. Martin Stranik (CZE); 3. Filip Schenk (ITA); 4. Yannik Flohè (GER); 5. Michael Piccolruaz (ITA); 6. Domen Skofic (SLO); 6. Stefano Ghisolfi (ITA); 6. Ludovico Fossali (ITA)

Lead Duel - Men
1. Stefano Ghisolfi (ITA); 2. Michael Piccolruaz (ITA); 3. Adam Ondra (CZE)

Lead Duel – Women
1. Mia Krampl (SLO); 2. Jessica Pilz (AUT); Vita Lukan (SLO)

HALL OF FAME
1987 Lynn Hill (USA) – Stefan Glowacz (GER)
1988 Lynn Hill (USA) – Patrick Edlinger (FRA), Stefan Glowacz (GER)
1989 Lynn Hill (USA) – Didier Raboutou (FRA)
1990 Lynn Hill (USA) – François Legrand (FRA)
1991 Isabelle Patissier (FRA) – Yuji Hirayama (JPN)
1992 Lynn Hill (USA) – Stefan Glowacz (GER)
1993 Susi Good (SUI) – Elie Chevieux (SUI)
1994 Robyn Erbesfield (USA) – François Legrand (FRA)
1995 Laurence Guyon (USA) – François Lombard (FRA)
1996 Katie Brown (USA) – François Lombard (FRA)
1997 Katie Brown (USA) – François Legrand (FRA)
1998 Liv Sansoz (FRA) – François Legrand (FRA)
1999 Muriel Sarkany (BEL) – Eugeny Ovtchinnikov (RUS)
2000 Muriel Sarkany (BEL) – Eugeny Ovtchinnikov (RUS)
2001 Muriel Sarkany (BEL), Martina Cufar (SLO) – Christian Bindhammer (GER), Tomas Mrazek (CZ), Yuji Hirayama (JPN)
2002 Sandrine Levet (FRA) – Alexandre Chabot (FRA)
2003 Angela Eiter (AUT) – Alexandre Chabot (FRA)
2004 Angela Eiter (AUT) – Alexandre Chabot (FRA)
2005 Angela Eiter (AUT) – Ramòn Julien Puigblanque (ESP)
2006 Sandrine Levet (FRA) – Ramòn Julien Puigblanque (ESP)
2007 Angela Eiter (AUT) – Ramòn Julien Puigblanque (ESP)
2008 Johanna Ernst (AUT) – Patxi Usobiaga (ESP)
2009 Angela Eiter (AUT) – Ramòn Julien Puigblanque (ESP)
2010 Kim Jain (JPN) – Ramòn Julien Puigblanque (ESP)
2011 Chereshneva Yana (RUS) – Adam Ondra (CZE)
2012 Angela Eiter (AUT) – Ramòn Julien Puigblanque (ESP)
2013 Mina Markovič (SLO) – Ramòn Julien Puigblanque (ESP)
2014 Magdalena Röck (AUT) – Sachi Amma (JPN)
2015 Hélène Janicot (FRA) – Adam Ondra (CZE)
2016 Janja Garnbret (SLO) – Adam Ondra (CZE)
2017 Julia Chanourdie (FRA) – Adam Ondra (CZE)
2018 Janja Garnbret (SLO) – Adam Ondra (CZE)
2019 Mia Krampl (SLO) – Jakob Schubert (AUT)
2021 Vita Lukan (SLO), Jessica Pilz (AUT) - Adam Ondra (CZE)

Info: www.rockmasterfestival.com