The reigning European Boulder champion and a rising Slovenian talent claim the top spots in Lithuania
The World Climbing Europe Series 2026 kicked off in Kaunas, Lithuania, with France's Sam Avezou and Slovenia's Lina Funa winning the men's and women's Boulder gold medals at the Boulder House Climbing Gym. A total of 176 athletes competed across qualifications, semi-finals, and finals, marking the first time Lithuania has hosted a Europe Series event.
AVEZOU WINS IN A TIGHT MEN'S FINAL
Avezou, the reigning Boulder European champion and a Paris 2024 Olympian, delivered a composed performance in the men's final to win with 68.9 points. The 25-year-old Frenchman topped two boulders and controlled his attempts across the round, adding yet another title to an already impressive résumé.
"I'm feeling really happy about winning this competition," said Avezou. "This was like the project when I came here, to qualify for the World Climbing Series for team France. I think what paid off most is maybe experience this time."
Israel's Yonatan Katz followed closely in second with 68.7 points, separated from the gold by just 0.2 points. Katz topped the final boulder to put pressure on Avezou, but it was not quite enough to overtake the experienced French athlete. His teammate, Or Mark completed the podium in third place with 68.2 points.
FUNA DOMINATES THE WOMEN'S FINAL
In the women's event, Lina Funa of Slovenia showed a great performance: the young Slovenian topped three of four boulders and finished with 84.0 points, a commanding score that left little doubt about the final outcome. Funa, who came through the Slovenian youth development system, signalled her arrival to the European season with authority.
Funa said: "Everything was building up to this moment. I felt super good in Winter training but also had a minor injury. This performance is something I'm really proud of. I'm happy because now I can start my World Climbing Series season peacefully and I hope it goes well. I'm so happy. I saw that coming for such a long time, but I never really believed, and now it's here and I'm so happy."
Great Britain’s young talent Isabella Bridgens claimed silver with 82.5 points after a strong final round that included three tops of her own. Israel's Ayala Kerem, last year’s World Championships finalist, rounded out the podium with 74.8 points.
MEDAL TABLE
The medal table of the World Climbing Europe Series Kaunas 2026 is as follows:
| NATION | GOLD | SILVER | BRONZE | TOTAL |
| France | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Slovenia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Israel | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Great Britain | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
NEXT UP
The Europe Series will resume continues with the next event in Liptovský Mikuláš, Slovakia, on 16 and 17 May.
All semi-finals and finals at European events will be live streamed on the World Climbing Europe YouTube channel. News and updates will be available on the World Climbing website and on the Federation’s digital channels: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Threads, TikTok, X, and exclusively for the Chinese audience, Bilibili, Douyin, Weibo, and Xiaohongshu.