Less than ten hours after the men's Boulder final, competition resumed in the outdoor arena at the Climbing Center Innsbruck. Austrian stars Jessica Pilz and Jakob Schubert made their first Lead appearances of the event – and both delivered.
Pilz produced strong performances on both qualification routes, recording 38 and 35+ holds to finish third overall. "I felt pretty good, even though it was brutally hot. Innsbruck is always special – you can feel it from the very first move," said the Lower Austrian, who now lives in Innsbruck. "I'm really looking forward to the semifinal!"
Only Slovenia's superstar Janja Garnbret and South Korea's Chaehyun Seo finished ahead of Pilz. Mattea Pötzi (32+, 32+) secured 13th place. "Qualification is often the hardest part of the day because it's the stage where you can really only lose. The first step is done now, and that's exactly why I'm excited to give it another push in tonight's semifinal," said the Carinthian climber.
Schubert Heads into the Semifinal with Extra Motivation
Jakob Schubert booked his place in the semifinal with a composed qualification performance (47+, 36+), finishing sixth overall. "The job is done, and that's what matters in qualification. But I would have liked to climb a bit better – I'm not completely satisfied," said the two-time Olympic bronze medallist in his typically self-critical manner. "I need to give everything in the semifinal because reaching the final is no longer something you can take for granted. But that's actually the mindset I enjoy climbing with the most."
Christian Leitner also impressed in his World Cup debut. The 17-year-old from Graz was on semifinal pace after the first route and eventually finished 27th, narrowly missing out on the top 24.
Emotional Farewell
The qualification round also brought an emotional moment as Julia Fišer competed in the final World Cup of her career in front of her home crowd. Her result (60th place) was secondary, as family, friends and teammates cheered on the 29-year-old Tyrolean with handmade signs and loud support. "On the first route everything still felt completely normal. I was in the flow, fighting and simply doing what I've done my whole life. It wasn't until the second route, when I saw the signs and felt the support from my friends, that it really hit me that this was my last competition," said Fišer.
Shortly afterwards, emotions took over. "When I saw how many people had come to share this moment with me, it was overwhelming. The appreciation from teammates, friends and everyone who has been part of my journey is probably the greatest gift you can receive at the end of your career."
The semifinals will take place on Saturday from 7:30 p.m., with the top-eight finals following on Sunday from 7:30 p.m. (both live on ORF Sport+).
