Sports Bulletin Report
Since he burst onto the international scene, Sorato Anraku has been a bit of a medal winning machine, not that he thinks of things that way
Coming into the World Climbing Series Innsbruck 2026, Anraku is very much the man to beat in Boulder this season. The Japanese climber made history in Prague last time out by taking his fourth consecutive Boulder gold medal in a row, a first for the men.
Looking to extend the streak and the record, Anraku is very simple in his thinking when it comes to competitions. Talking about the upcoming days Anraku said: “I like the Innsbruck venue; I’m looking forwarding to competing here.”
Moving onto the run of wins, Anraku said: “Of course I want to win more, especially here in Innsbruck. I don’t really feel the pressure though to win five in a row; I just focus on the individual competition. I take it one event at a time.”
Just like Prague, Innsbruck is a discipline double-header with both Boulder and Lead medals up for grabs, and while Anraku has won every Boulder medal on offer in the series, he is yet to win a Lead medal.
After taking gold in Boulder, Anraku had a quick turnaround for the Lead final, and he felt the fatigue kick in: “I did a lot of competitions in a row; Bern, Madrid and Prague in Boulder, so I was exhausted in the Lead final.
“But for this event I took some time out in Munich to prepare and recover ready to do both disciplines again here. It was all about recovery and I learned that from the previous events. I’m ready.”
Anraku will have to be ready for climbers like France’s Mejdi Schalck, Belgium’s Hannes Van Duysen and USA’s Colin Duffy who will be looking to push him from his top spot.
Even within his own team there is stiff competition from Meichi Narasaki and Sohta Amagasa who have tasted success in Innsbruck before.
For the home interest, Jan-Luca Posch and Nicolai Uznik will be spurred on by a roaring Austrian crowd in the men’s while Jakoba Rauter while be hoping to continue her form from the World Climbing Europe Youth Championship Sukoró 2026 where she won gold in the U19 competition.
All four gold medallists from the women’s Boulder series are in Innsbruck with France’s Zélia Avezou, Australia’s Oce Mackenzie, Great Britain’s Erin McNeice and USA’s Annie Sanders all hoping to edge out in front of the 2026 series ranking by taking a second gold.
Targeting for their first of the year will be climbers including France’s Oriane Bertone, Japan’s Melody Sekikawa and Mao Nakamura, Slovenia’s Jennifer Buckley who has stepped onto a podium before in Innsbruck, and first-time Boulder medallist in Prague last time out, China’s Yuetong Zhang.
The Boulder competition starts on 17 June with women’s qualification and ends on 19 June with the men’s final. The focus then shifts to Lead with qualification and semi-finals on 20 June and finals on 21 June to bring the event to a close.
