Veddriq Leonardo Soars, Other Climbers Chasing

Veddriq Leonardo could not hide his disappointment. Although his time record in the second climb was better, at 5.165 seconds, Veddriq shouted "arghh" with a dissatisfied expression as he descended from the climbing wall. Veddriq recorded a time of 5.201 seconds in the first climb.

The moment occurred during the qualification round of the 2025 Climbing World Cup series in Wujiang, China, on Friday (26/4/2025). Veddriq understandably felt disappointed and unsatisfied. In addition to being far from his personal best record of 4.75 seconds, the time recorded in the qualification round put his progress at risk of coming to a halt.

After a total of 52 athletes completed two climbing attempts, it was finally determined that Veddriq would not be able to continue his journey in his first World Cup this year. Veddriq finished in 17th place with a best time of 5.165 seconds. He was only 0.003 seconds away from the last qualifying spot for the finals, held by Shi Zechuan (China) in 16th place with a best time of 5.162 seconds.

Veddriq was not at his best. Two weeks before leaving for Wujiang, the 2024 Paris Olympics gold medalist was forced to skip training on the speed climbing wall because he was still recovering from a left finger injury. He even showed off his swollen finger.

Last week, Veddriq had started light training on the speed climbing wall even though he had not fully recovered. The climber from Pontianak, West Kalimantan, had not yet reached his best performance. "Indeed, if the finger is injured, it is quite vital, because the finger is one of the fighting tools in rock climbing," said Veddriq.

However, what is surprising about the results of the qualifying round is that a time of just 5 seconds is not enough to advance the male climber to the final round. This indicates that the time records of the climbers are becoming increasingly tighter, making the competition even more intense.

Veddriq had anticipated it. According to Veddriq, after the Paris 2024 Olympics, athletes from other countries will certainly not remain idle. They will strive to catch up with Veddriq's achievements by continuously sharpening their time records.

"After the Olympics, we seem to have opened up and seen the potential athletes who will be the top in the World Cup. Maybe there are some new names too," said Veddriq.

"Certainly, after the recent Olympics, people will pursue it. They will enhance their capabilities. And indeed, I see from social media that they are exceptionally serious in preparing for it," he added.

One of the climbers actively sharing his activities or preparations for the World Cup on social media is Samuel Watson (United States). Watson holds the world record in rock climbing with a time of 4.74 seconds.

On his Instagram account, Watson uploaded a video of himself finishing in 4.6 seconds during training. He even stated that he would break the world record again in Wujiang.

"So, for us, at the very least, we need to capture the atmosphere of the competition since we have not felt it for a long time in international events. This is while we gauge how the competition will be this year. Only after that will we assess the results and evaluate," said Veddriq.

In the qualifying round, Watson was unable to break the world record again. However, Watson topped the qualifying rankings with the best time of 4.76 seconds. He was followed by Chinese climber Long Jianguo with 4.874 seconds, and then Indonesian athlete Kiromal Katibin with 4.964 seconds.

Most climbers, such as Veddriq, are able to finish in just over 5 seconds. However, this is not sufficient to advance to the final round of the World Cup, considering there are also several athletes who can climb in under 5 seconds. They are the top five qualifiers. Additionally, there are many climbers who are close to 5 seconds, such as 5.05 seconds, 5.09 seconds, and so on.

In the same series last year, Veddriq's best time was not particularly impressive either. He recorded a time of 5.14 seconds and ranked 7th. However, if he finishes with the same time in Wujiang this year, Veddriq's ranking will drop to 15th place.

The increasingly fierce competition was also expressed by Kiromal. In the past, Kiromal stated, imagining climbing in under 5 seconds was already difficult. Moreover, with a time of 5.25 seconds, Kiromal has broken the world record in the series held in Salt Lake City, United States, in 2021. He is the first Indonesian male climber to break the world record.

At the same event, Veddriq broke Kiromal's world record with a time of 5.20 seconds. After that, their names alternated on the list of world record holders. In the 2022 World Cup series in Villars, Switzerland, Kiromal became the first climber in the world to finish in 5 seconds.

A year later, at the 2023 World Cup series in Seoul, South Korea, Veddriq became the first person to conquer the climbing wall in under 5 seconds, specifically in 4.98 seconds. He sharpened this record at the same event to 4.90 seconds.

Now, the competition at the global level is becoming increasingly intense with times becoming sharper. Climbers must be able to record a time of under 5 seconds if they wish to advance to the next round or even reach the podium.

After Veddriq sharpened the time to 4.90 seconds, Samuel Watson entered the list of world record holders by breaking the record twice with times of 4.85 seconds and 4.79 seconds in Wujiang last year. Watson further improved it that same year to 4.75 seconds.

"I see that climbers from other countries are also starting to sharpen their times down to 4.6 seconds. Perhaps in Wujiang, it will become a 'battle' over who is the most consistent," said Kiromal.

Nevertheless, both Veddriq and Kiromal are optimistic about continuing to sharpen their time records. These two climbers have even expressed their determination to reclaim the "throne" of the world record. That is their major target this year.

In the four years since the first world record set by Kiromal and Veddriq, climbing has surged forward. Athletes continue to sharpen their times, making finishes under 5 seconds seem like a necessity. Climbing now appears to be not just a competition to conquer climbing walls, but a race to surpass the limits of human capability itself.