Madrid, Spain, debuted its first IFSC Climbing World Cup this past weekend, featuring three Olympians among the seven US athletes who competed. This lead-only event saw more than 163 athletes from 36 countries and territories at the Recinto ferial de Alcobendas fairground nestled right in the center of a bustling community. Although July is typically the hottest month for Spain, the air was calm, allowing for an attentive crowd to fill up every inch of space within the venue during Finals. The last time an IFSC Climbing World Cup was held in Spain was back in 2011 in Barcelona—nearly 14 years ago.

Annie Sanders progressed to her fourth lead final round of the season before making history by topping both her Semi-Finals and Finals routes. Olympian Brooke Raboutou is back on the scene as well, making it to finals alongside fellow Olympian Colin Duffy.

Sanders Makes History and Raboutou Takes Bronze

Annie Sanders achieved a perfect performance as the only athlete to top both routes. By the time semi-finals began, it was night in Madrid, where Sanders gained momentum from the crowd as she neared the finish with 30 seconds on the clock. With seven seconds remaining, she clipped the anchors as the crowd cheered below after an extremely tiring route. In a strong position, Sanders faced significant pressure heading into finals. However, that pressure quickly faded after she executed a flawless two-handed dyno on her final route, signaling the top was near. As the sun set in Madrid, she hopped to the top and stayed there, visibly emotional. Every athlete before her had tried and failed the same move.

With this semi-finals and finals top, Sanders became the first US woman to win gold in both boulder and lead. When told of the achievement, Sanders didn’t know what to say.

“I’m honestly still in shock right now. I’m super excited to finally have executed well enough to win gold,” Sanders said. “After the first lead comp in China, I knew I was capable of this, and I’m glad it finally happened.”

This Gold was Sanders’ first in the Lead discipline, marking her impressive progress since the beginning of the season. Not only is this an incredible personal benchmark, but for the history of competition climbing as well. Sanders is only the fourth US woman to win a Lead Gold medal, as well as the ninth woman ever to win both Lead and Boulder Gold medals.

Olympian Brooke Raboutou finished taking bronze, rounding out the podium for the US. Although Sanders was the only athlete to top any of the routes, Raboutou had standout moves of her own that drew similar attention. During semi-finals, Raboutou chose to rest in a one-hand campus on a sloped jug, alternating between hands. In finals, she opted to move off a middle-finger pocket—a decision that shocked the crowd—before falling as she reached for the finish. Although she didn’t top, Raboutou reached the hold just before with 1 minute, 12 seconds still on the clock, showcasing her speed.

Also representing Team USA in the Qualification round were Adriene Akiko Clark, who finished 50th, and Quinn Mason, close behind in 52nd.

Duffy Impresses During Tight Finals Round

Olympian Colin Duffy carried momentum from his finals performance in Chamonix. In semi-finals, he looked comfortable on every move, especially when he moved powerfully from a pull to a crimp—one of the separator moves along the route. The crux stumped both Duffy and fellow Olympian Jesse Grupper, as athletes were expected to rock over an incredibly high heel—a move neither could complete, though both gave a valiant effort.

During finals, Duffy stayed consistent and decisive without hesitation, going for a double clutch dyno to an unpredictable hold he had little vision of from the ground. Despite falling earlier than he expected, Duffy stayed in the lead on the podium for almost the entire round. Eventually, however, Duffy was bumped from the podium due to time spent on the wall. He had the same score as the Bronze podium athlete.

Olympian Jesse Grupper struggled on some of the same moves as Duffy but still delivered a strong semi-finals performance. Grupper was controlled in every swing, turning dynamic movements nearly static through his core strength. He climbed quickly and smoothly throughout the route, even choosing not to fix the rope when it looped over his arm. Eventually, Grupper fell at the same spot as Duffy and missed Finals by just one positive motion point.

Also representing Team USA in the qualification round was Sergey Lakhno in 46th place.

Full results from the IFSC Climbing World Cup Madrid 2025 can be found here. You can rewatch the finals on the IFSC YouTube Channel.

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