Following five events across Europe, the UIAA Ice Climbing Continental Tour concluded on the weekend of 8-9 March with a second visit to the northeast of England.

The port city of Sunderland, located on the mouth of the River Wear, welcomed 75 athletes from 15 countries. Action took place at the Sunderland Wall venue with both a senior competition and youth classifications for U20, U18 and 16 climbers. The event was organised by the British Mountaineering Council and the Scottish Drytooling Club.

Up for grabs were the final Continental medals of the season and the Continental Tour titles.

Men: Milan Pellissier, a 20 year-old climber from France, took his first ever senior gold medal in Sunderland. It marked the conclusion to an impressive season which also saw him reach the finals of two lead World Cup competitions. Switzerland’s Jonathan Arthur Brown took silver and France’s Basile Fetet, bronze. The UK is a happy hunting ground for Fetet who last finished on the podium in Glasgow in 2023.

Brown’s silver medal secured the Continental title – awarded to the athlete with most points after the five European Continental Cups. The 24-year old Swiss athlete closed the season with three continental golds, one continental silver as well as a World Cup bronze. Mehdi Bouchet Bert Manoz of France and Jan Mondzelewski, Poland, completed the podium for the overall Continental tour.

Women: Japan’s Haruko Takeuchi made winning the Continental series a major goal for the 2024-2025 season. Bronze in Sunderland followed golds in Utrecht and Zilina and secured the women’s title by 35 points. Netherlands’ emerging Annick Teepe took the gold in Sunderland, her first on the UIAA circuit, which together with a silver and bronze from earlier rounds, earned her second place in the overall standings. Ilona Serrer, another 20-year old from France, was a first time medallist and secured the silver which propelled her into third place in the seasonal standings.

Livestreaming replay (Lead Finals)

Final Continental Season (Europe) Leaderboard – After 5 European Rounds

Women:
Haruko Takeuchi, Japan, 371 points
Annick Teepe, Netherlands, 336
Ilona Serrer, France, 261

Men:
Jonathan Brown, Switzerland, 385 points
Mehdi Bouchet Bert Manoz, France 234.5
Jan Mondzelewski, Poland, 229.25

A reminder that the World Tour level events concluded last weekend with the final World Cup of the season in Edmonton.

The Continental Cup in Sunderland closed the 2024-2025 season. Details on the 2025-2026 UIAA Ice Climbing World Tour calendar will be published in due course.

Further Information
Sunderland event page
Sunderland results