The first Speed competition of the World Climbing Series 2026 is set to take place in Wujiang, China, where a stacked field will launch a season already shaped by world records, historic times, and growing anticipation around the introduction of the four-lane format later this year.

COLLI IS READY FOR A NEW ERA OF SPEED

Among the athletes looking ahead to the new season with optimism is Beatrice Colli of Italy, who says she finally feels fully healthy after years dealing with an Achilles tendon injury.

“I’m stoked for the upcoming season. I’ve been working harder and better than ever,” she said. “For the first time in my life, I could properly use my legs for the entire off-season. My training is finally complete and worthy of a high-level athlete.”

Colli spent much of the winter training in Italy before travelling abroad for training: “I went to Japan for a training camp and I met incredible athletes, super motivated to improve. There I found a community of young Speed Climbing athletes that made me understand how beautiful and important it is to commit to your sport.”

The Italian is also enthusiastic about the four-lane format, which will officially be part of three World Climbing Series events later this season in Krakow, Poland; Guiyang, China; and Chongqing, China.

“We will experience such intense and challenging emotions that nothing else could possibly provide,” she said. “The spectators are going to go crazy for these events. We literally look like spiders racing each other on a 15-meter vertical wall, pushing the limits together.”

Looking ahead to the level of the women’s competition, Colli believes even faster times are coming soon: “For sure, women are going to break the six-second barrier. Our sport is growing incredibly fast; nothing is predictable anymore. All I know is that we are going beyond what we thought was possible, even just one year ago.”

WOMEN’S FIELD PUSHING NEW LIMITS

The women’s competition is led by reigning Wujiang champion Zhang Shaoqin of China and Speed Series 2025 winner Emma Hunt of the USA.

Also competing is Desak Made Rita Kusuma Dewi of Indonesia, who last month became only the second woman ever to climb below 6.10 seconds after clocking a historic time at the Asian Championships in Meishan, China.

MEN’S FIELD SET FOR RECORD-LEVEL BATTLE

The men’s competition features many of the world’s fastest climbers, including last year’s gold medallist in Wujiang, Long Jianguo of China, and reigning Speed Series winner Kiromal Katibin of Indonesia.

Among the biggest stories ahead of the event is the presence of 16-year-old sensation Zhao Yicheng, who last month set a new world record of 4.58 seconds at the Asian Beach Games Sanya 2026. Zhao also teamed up with Long to set a new men’s Relay world record of 9.75 seconds – the first team performance under 10 seconds.

The Chinese teenager is now set for a potential showdown with Samuel Watson of the USA, the previous world record holder and Paris 2024 bronze medallist, with expectations high for a battle between the two fastest climbers in history.

WHERE TO WATCH

Speed competitions at the World Climbing Series Wujiang 2026 will begin with qualifications, tomorrow at 13:00 (UTC+8:00), while finals are set to kick off at 20:00.

All rounds will be live streamed on the World Climbing YouTube channel, with geo-blocking applied to selected countries and territories.

For an overview of where to watch the event click here.

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.