The opening round of Speed Relay qualifying at the World Climbing Series in Guiyang saw China 1 and Spain 1 emerge at the head of the men’s and women’s fields, respectively, as the competition’s final day began with a series of standout runs.
China pair within fractions of the world record
China’s duo, Ling Yongzhi and Zhao Yicheng, produced the fastest time in the men’s qualification, stopping the clock at 9.78 seconds. That mark left them a hair’s breadth — just 0.03 seconds — short of the standing world record of 9.75, a benchmark held by Zhao Yicheng alongside his other teammate Long Jianguo.
The performance set up heightened expectations for the medal round, where fractions of a second will decide podium positions on the four-lane speed wall.
Spain leads the women after dramatic turnaround
On the women’s side, Spain 1 — represented by Leslie Adriana Romero Pérez and Carla Martínez Vidal — topped qualifying with a combined time of 13.54 seconds. Martínez Vidal’s run followed a difficult individual event earlier in the weekend, when she struggled with the Tomoa move; her recovery helped Spain claim the top seed going into the finals.
“It was super crazy. Friday, I messed up all the Tomoas, and today I was afraid of it. So I didn't do a lot of Tomoas in the warm-up area, but in the second r”
That reflection captured the emotional swing of the weekend for the Spanish climber as she moved from disappointment in the individual contest to a leading role in the relay.
Top qualifiers and what to watch in the final
Germany’s leading pair — Germany 1, featuring Sebastian Lucke and Leander Carmanns — qualified fourth with a time of 10.45 seconds. Carmanns said he felt comfortable in the conditions and expects the team to push for an even faster run when medals are decided.
Key themes to follow as the finals approach include the thin margins separating the fastest teams, how athletes manage pressure in the head-to-head relay format on four lanes, and whether any pair can eclipse the existing 9.75 world record.
- China 1 delivered the quickest men’s qualification run: 9.78s.
- Spain 1 topped the women’s field with a combined time of 13.54s.
- Germany 1 placed fourth in men’s qualifying with 10.45s, signalling competitive depth in the European contingent.
| Team | Event | Qualification time |
|---|---|---|
| China 1 (Ling Yongzhi / Zhao Yicheng) | Men’s Speed Relay | 9.78s |
| Germany 1 (Sebastian Lucke / Leander Carmanns) | Men’s Speed Relay | 10.45s |
| Spain 1 (Leslie Romero Pérez / Carla Martínez Vidal) | Women’s Speed Relay | 13.54s |
Organisers also reported the setting of two new Oceania records during the session, a sign of the global spread of climbing performance, though specifics were not detailed in the qualifying summary.
As the competition moves into medal rounds, the contest promises tight margins and the possibility that established records could be challenged. For Canadian observers of the rapidly evolving sport of competitive climbing, the Guiyang event underlines both the technical demands of speed relay formats and the razor-thin differences that now separate victory from near-miss on the international circuit.
