Samuel Watson Captures World Cup Climbing Gold In Edinburgh

Samuel Watson chalks up before competing at the 2022 IFSC Climbing World Cup on May 27, 2022 in Salt Lake City.

After flying up the climbing wall in 5.97 seconds Saturday in Edinburgh, Scotland, 16-year-old Samuel Watson happily pumped both his arms and smiled as he was lowered back to the ground.
The moment was historic.
Watson defeated Jinbao Long of China in the final matchup of the men’s speed competition, capturing his first career world cup title and becoming the youngest male climber in world cup history to win a gold medal.
“It feels amazing,” Watson said in a post-race interview on the International Federation of Sports Climbing (IFSC) livestream.
Watson, whose previous best finish in a world cup event was eighth, defeated Gian Luca Zodda of Italy in the semifinals, winning with a time of 5.61 as Zodda slipped and fell. The victory advanced Watson to his first world cup championship matchup ever.
“I really focused on keeping my mentality through the entire way,” Watson said. “Just staying positive with all the runs and all the little hiccups.”
Watson, a Texan who finished third in this year’s youth world championships in Dallas, made his world cup debut in May in Seoul, South Korea. He finished 16th in Seoul and then had a pair of eighth-place finishes in world cup events held in Salt Lake City.
Watson was one of two Americans to win medals Saturday.
Emma Hunt, a 19-year-old from Woodstock, Georgia, won her third medal of the world cup season, finishing third in the women’s speed competition. She defeated Giulia Randi of Italy in the small final to capture the bronze medal.
This adds to the two silver medals Hunt won in May.