After a lengthy six-month absence, the world's premier climbing competition is back.
The IFSC Climbing World Cup returns tomorrow in Shaoxing, China, for the first leg of a year-long competition to crown the world's best climbers.
But what exactly is a Climbing World Cup, and how does it work? Read on for everything you need to know about the highly anticipated 2025/26 competition.
How does the IFSC World Cup work?
The IFSC World Cup is the biggest competition in sport climbing.
It pits the world's best boulderers, speed climbers, and lead climbers against each other over 14 competitions held across the globe and throughout the year.
Points from each competition are then tallied up, and climbers are ranked on separate leaderboards for bouldering, speed climbing, and lead climbing. These rankings decide the eventual world champions.
This season's competition begins on April 18 in Shaoxing, China, and concludes next year on September 5 in the Slovenian city of Koper. Before then, the world's best climbers will go head to head in multiple countries and continents.
Most stages don't feature all three disciplines and will usually just have one or two. The upcoming Shaoxing World Cup leg is a solely bouldering competition, so won't have any lead or speed climbing.
The IFSC World Cup schedule
Here are the dates for every World Cup competition in the 2025/26 season:
- April 18 – 20 - Boulder World Cup in Shaoxing, China
- April 25 – 27 Lead and Speed World Cup in Wuijang, China
- May 2 - 4 Lead and Speed World Cup in Bali, Indonesia
- May 16 - 18 Boulder World Cup in Curitiba, Brazil
- May 23 - 25 Boulder World Cup in Salt Lake City, USA
- May 31 - June 2 Speed World Cup in Denver, USA
- June 6 - 8 Boulder World Cup in Prague, Czechia
- June 13 - 15 Boulder World Cup in Bern, Switzerland
- June 25 - 29 Boulder and Lead World Cup in Innsbruck, Austria
- July 5 - 6 Speed World Cup in Krakow, Poland
- July 11 - 13 Lead and Speed World Cup in Chamonix, France
- July 18 - 19Lead World Cup in Madrid, Spain
- July 26 - 27 Speed (S) World Cup, TBD
- September 5 - 6 Lead World Cup in Koper, Slovenia
Climbers to watch
Climbing fanatics can expect big things from this year's competition, with a fresh set of young and hungry climbers ready to take their opportunity at the highest level.
Japanese prodigy Sorato Anraku will be eager to defend his men's bouldering crown and challenge British Olympic champion Toby Roberts in men's lead climbing – an event Roberts ran away with last year.
18-year-old Anraku has enjoyed a rapid rise to stardom in his short career. He bulldozed last year's bouldering competition and will be a heavy favorite in Shaoxing.
Reigning champion Natalia Grossman will be defending her crown in the women's bouldering competition. She took home the gold following impressive first-place finishes in the Salt Lake City and Prague legs of last year's competition.
Later in the season, Slovenian titan Janja Garnbret will be keen to regain her place atop the women's lead climbing podium, after Austrian Jessica Pilz snatched a narrow victory in the final event of last year's World Cup.
At just 26, Garnbret is already a legend of IFSC climbing, with a breath-taking 32 World Cup golds to her name.
More information
Eager to catch the action? Check out our guide to how to watch the IFSC Climbing World Cup on TV or stream it online.
We'll be keeping a close eye on the competition here at Advnture, so make sure to check back for reaction after every round.
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