IFSC World Cup Series:
Iranian climber Alipour misses out on speed podium
Iranian climbing sensation Reza Alipour left the latest IFSC World Cup event empty-handed, finishing fifth in men’s speed event in Krakow, Poland, on Sunday.
A winner of a remarkable 14 medals including six golds – at the competition, Alipour registered a 5.168-second qualification time to progress to the round of 16, before clocking 5.16 seconds to knock out China’s Jianguo Long (6.00 seconds).
However, the Iranian’s campaign came to an end in the quarterfinals, where he scaled the wall in 5.16 seconds against American Zach Hammer – who finished the race in 4.85 seconds – to settle for a fifth-place finish.
Former world champion and two-time Asian Games gold medalist Alipour, 31, was unlucky to miss out on the Olympic podium in Paris last year after falling short against American prodigy Sam Watson in the bronze medal contest. The setback in Paris, however, did little to dampen Alipour’s determination as he sets sights on glory at L.A. 2028.
Meanwhile, an all-Indonesian gold medal race in Krakow saw Raharjati Nursamsa steal the show with a lightning-fast 4.73 seconds for a new men’s Asian record and personal best, also securing his second World Cup win after taking the ultimate prize on home soil gold two years ago. Kiromal Katibin slipped early in the final to settle for silver.
The bronze medal went to Omasa Ryo of Japan, who kept his composure with a 5.48-second effort after Hammer slipped near the top of the route. It was Omasa’s fourth career World Cup podium, and his second of the season following a silver in Bali, Indonesia.
The IFSC World Cup Series 2025 move to Chamonix, France, next where lead and speed competitions are scheduled from July 11-13.