It’s not uncommon to see double Olympic champion Garnbret at the top of a leaderboard, whether that’s at the end of qualification, a semi-final or a final – and at the first event of the 2026 season, that’s where she is.

Searching for her 50th gold medal across World Climbing Series and former World Cup events, Garnbret flashed the first four Boulders in Keqiao, a venue she won gold at in 2024, and reached the zone on boulder five for a score of 110pts and a first-place position going into the semi-final.

After the qualification Garnbret said: "It was a super good round. I felt totally different than last year in Innsbruck [her first competition of the 2025 season]. Last year I was too overwhelmed, but this year I had a different approach and maybe I was a bit more relaxed.

"The round was harder than most of the qualis - which I like. It was a good start to the season, and I think the routesetters wanted to see where the level was at. I’m excited for semis and finals. I feel good, my mind is good, my body is healthy – I’m happy."

STRONG NATIONS BOOK SEMI PLACES

With the women split into two groups and Garnbret occupying one first position, the other was filled by Japan’s Mia Aoyagi. Such is the strength and depth in Japan; Aoyagi didn’t make the team for the past two years and is competing at this level for the first time since 2023. She topped three boulders and made the zone in one for 84.1pts.

Joining her in the semi-finals are four teammates with maybe the surprise being that Mao Nakamura is the one to miss the cut from the nation.

Melina Costanza won bronze at the World Championships last year, and in the build-up to Keqiao said: “I know how strong the competition is, and I definitely do not underestimate that…I think it pushes the level higher for everyone.” (Read the full interview)

You can see just how strong the competition is with climbers like Nakamura, South Korea’s Chaehyun Seo and teammate Nekaia Sanders missing out. Costanza does have company though from the US in the semis, and with those names being the likes Annie Sanders and Brooke Raboutou, the strength is once again confirmed.

THE LONE RANGERS

Oriane Bertone sits in third and is another part of a strong team with the France having four climbers in the semi-final. But sitting alongside Bertone is Australia’s Ocea Mackenzie.

Mackenzie is one of three climbers who will be the sole representatives from their nation in the next round with the others being Canada’s Madison Richardson and home nation climber, China’s Yuetong Zhang.

Other nations with semis representation are Great Britain who has Erin Mcneice has their highest qualifier in fifth, and Italy who is led by Francesca Matuella in 15^th.

Speaking after the round Matuella's teammate Giorgia Tesio said: "The round was pretty hard so I did everything I could. I don’t think I could have done much more than I did. The first event of the year I never know what to expect. Every year feels like the first time competing."

RESULTS

Click here for the full results

UP NEXT

The women will finish their competition tomorrow with both the semi-final and final on day 2 of the World Climbing Series Keqiao 2026. The semi-final and final 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.