The final UIAA ice climbing competition of the calendar year was staged in Utrecht, the Netherlands, last Saturday. Organised by the Royal Dutch Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (NKBV) and Sportcentrum Olympos, 67 athletes from 15 countries took part in the fourth Continental Cup of the season.
Competitions resume on 9 January with the headline acts of the 2025-2026 season taking precedence. Cheongsong, South Korea will be the destination for the first of four World Cups on three continents. A full preview of the World Tour events will be published on Wednesday 17 December. In terms of the (difficult/lead-only) Continental series across Europe, two more events remain – a visit to Sunderland, England on the weekend of 6-8 February (during a break in the world-level events) and the season closer in Oulu, Finland on 7 March.
When athletes return to the Continental circuit, the quest to be crowned champions promises to be gripping. Both the women’s and the men’s standings are finely poised. In the women’s competition, there was a shake-up in the leaderboard this weekend. A win on home territory saw Marianne van der Steen take the gold in Utrecht. This followed her first place in the season opener in Bern and bettered a second place at this event last season. World Champion in speed, Aneta Louzecka of Czechia claimed her first medal of the season, and in finishing second, demonstrated her versatility across both disciplines of ice climbing. She joins van der Steen at the top of the standings. Former leader Marion Salmon-Thomas did not compete this weekend so is relegated to third. There was some joy for the French team though with 21-year old Ilana Serrar taking a bronze for the second time in four events.
The men’s event proved to be wide open with none of the three leaders contending the final this weekend. Team Liechtenstein had an excellent competition with brothers Florian and Andreas Gantner excelling. Younger brother Florian claimed silver. A more noted speed climber, this was his first medal in difficulty. Andreas won bronze, his second third place of the season and a result which sees him make the top three in the seasonal standings. However, overall victory went to a rising talent in Spain’s 19-year old Jorge Veiga Rodriguez. He first won gold in 2024 in Finland, and this latest success adds to a number of impressive performances. It is also a nod to the Continental circuit’s objective at providing a pathway for young climbers. Rodriguez won the youth event in Utrecht in 2023 and in the space of two years has claimed the senior title.
Photos from the event can be viewed here.
Current Continental Season Rankings (after four rounds)
Women: (1) M Van der Steen (NED), 237 points, (2) A Louzecka (CZE), 237 pts, (3) M Salom-Thomas (FRA), 221.5 pts
Men: (1) O Hamerský (CZE), 206 pts, (2) A Gantner (LIE), 176 pts, (3) V Devin (FRA), 166.5 pts
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Photo credit: Marianne van der Steen in action during the 2025 event in Utrecht. UIAA/Rein Rijke
