A familiar face has quit competition climbing after a decade of competing at the highest level.
Former European champ Stasa Gejo has been ever-present at IFSC climbing world cups since her debut in 2015, snagging bronze in the 2018, 2021, and 2023 bouldering competitions.
The 27-year-old announced her shock decision in a scathing Instagram post, that criticized competition route setting.
"The competition environment doesn’t inspire me, it repulses me,” said Gejo.
"I can’t see another no-tex hold. I can’t see the same faces setting every competition and dictating the trends. I have a problem with it and that’s it. I don’t have the support, a team, a gym, and resources to pay these precious faces, to follow the trends and be good at them."
Route setters design and create climbing routes for professional competition. They strategically place holds to dictate the difficulty of a route.
Professional route-setters choose the routes for IFSC competitions and follow strict guidelines published on the IFSC website.
In a statement to Advnture, the IFSC said: "We've acknowledged Stasa's decision, and we will miss her at IFSC competitions. She's part of the IFSC athletes commission and she's always expressed her thoughts very frankly inside and outside the climbing community.
"Regarding route-setters, we have a trusted pool of professionals who set our world cups and world championships. Despite having different styles and ideas (which are welcomed because every setting should be different), they follow the IFSC guidelines."
Gejo said that a lack of funding and inadequate training also aided her decision.
Gejo burst onto the scene in 2015, winning gold in the junior bouldering and combined climbing world championships. Over the next decade, she solidified herself as a formidable boulderer and capable lead climber.
Gejo's last competitive outing was last August at the European championships in Villars, Switzerland. She ranked 8th in the boulder competition.
She continued: "I was afraid to just call it and say bye. I felt like it would be a shame to just go. In Villars in August, I knew it was my last IFSC comp."
"And I loved being there with my good friends and with my family. But I didn’t like the climbing part at all. Finals disgusted me especially."
Gejo intends to continue her climbing journey outdoors, by sending the world's toughest boulder problems.
Concluding her statement, Gejo said: "My climbing life isn’t over. I just don’t want to be a part of this circus anymore. I might return for a competition or two but my full focus is on climbing outside and climbing for myself. I want to discover places and people and just climb."
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