Ice Climbing World Cup 2017: Alexey Dengin and Shin Woonseon win in USA

Durango, Colorado, hosted the first stage of the Ice Climbing World Cup 2017 for its first time ever. The competition turned out to be both special and atypical; the wall, only 12m high and completed with suspended wooden cubers, forced the Korean and Russian route setters to invent some extremely technical routes that tested the climbers’ ability to adapt to the specific holds and moves, more than the climbers’ stamina. The resulting male and female finals turned out to be real battles, with a series of twists and turns which delighted the crowd no end; after the somewhat
boring semifinals, the spectators had great fun cheering on every athlete.

In the women's competition Korea’s Shin Woonseon produced a brilliant performance and also managed to fight hard against the bitter cold; Italy’s Angelika Rainer placed second with another great climb: "I am very happy with this start to the season," explained Rainer, "I had some problems with the wind, halfway up my hands were completely frozen, but I tried to fight until the bitter end, and it was well worth it. " Third place went to the surprising Eimir Mc Swiggan, born in Ireland but Korean by adoption, seeing that she lives and trains in Korea. Her incredible fight netted her a place on the podium in only the second final of her career.

The men's competition was definitely the most technical ever, with extreme moves that resembled a sequence of bouldering. The winner was Russia’s Alexey Dengin who produced the only top in the competition! "I am extremely happy, this is a dream come true" said the athlete from Moscow “after so many attempts, I’ve finally done it”. In previous seasons Dengin was unlucky on a series of occasions and missed out on the top spot, and in Durango his fellow competitors literally pounced on him and celebrated his well-deserved victory! Second place went to another Russian, Nikolai Kuzovlev while third place went to his teammate and reigning World Champion Maxim Tomilov.

The next stage of the World Cup will be hosted by the Chinese capital, Beijing, for the first time ever. All athletes have stated that they are excited and motivated to take part in this next leg that promises a record number of other competitors thanks, in part, to the fact that it will be followed immediately by the second Asian stage in Korea.

For further info check out theuiaa.org/ice-climbing/ice-climbing-live, or either Facebook or Twitter.

Alexey Dengin in the finals

Shin Woonseon in the finals


LEAD
Women
1 Shin Woonseon KOR 9.190
2 Angelika Rainer ITA 8.180
3 Eimir Mc Swiggan IRL 8.170
4 Nadezhda Gallyamova RUS 7.142
5 Maryam Filippova RUS 7.131
6 Song Han Na Rai KOR 4.100
7 Mariia Edler RUS 4.080
8 Maria Tolokonina RUS 2.040

Men
1 Alexey Dengin RUS Top (6.35)
2 Nikolai Kuzovlev RUS 8.230
3 Tomilov Maxim RUS 8.222
4 Valentin Sypavin UKR 8.221
5 Alexey Tomilov RUS 8.220
6 Park HeeYong KOR 6.190
7 Noah Beek CAN 6.181
8 Janez Svoljsak SLO 5.130

SPEED
Women
1 Maria Tolokonina RUS
2 Nadezhda Gallyamova RUS
3 Kendra Stritch USA
4 Olga Kosek POL

Men
1 Nikolai Kuzovlev RUS
2 Valentyn Sypavin UKR
3 Nikolay Shved RUS
4 David Bouffard CAN