The term G.O.A.T. gets thrown around a lot in professional sports, but in competition climbing, perhaps no one deserves the title more than Janja Garnbret. After taking a 9-month hiatus away from World Cup competitions, the two-time Olympic champion from Slovenia won gold in bouldering at the Innsbruck World Cup today.
The 26-year-old’s resume is stacked: 47 World Cup wins in bouldering and lead events, 10 overall World Cup titles, and eight titles at the World Championships. Since climbing was introduced at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, she’s won gold twice, cementing her dominance in the sport.
But in the midst of all of this success, Garnbret consciously chose to take a break from competition.
“After years of competitions and especially the Olympic year itself, which was physically and mentally demanding, I’ve decided to do it a bit differently this year,” she wrote on Instagram in April. “Of course, I’m still training hard and upgrading my last year’s shape, but I also felt that I needed a bit more time away from competing.”
She announced that she would only compete at three IFSC events in 2025: the World Cups in Innsbruck and Koper, and the World Championships in South Korea. Her return to competition in Innsbruck this week marked her first competition since the Koper World Cup in September 2024.
Janja Garnbret Wins in First Comp Since ’24
Initially, Garnbret looked solid but not unbeatable, placing fifth in qualification and fourth in semi-finals. In the finals round, she appeared to reach a new gear, becoming the only athlete to top all four boulders.
She finished with a score of 99.3, far ahead of silver medalist Oriane Bertone (69.8) and bronze medalist Anon Matsufuji (59.5).
“It feels amazing. I didn’t know how I would feel coming back, but this amazing Innsbruck crowd welcomed me back,” Garnbret said in a press release. “I really enjoyed myself on the wall, had a bit of a shaky start in qualification, then it felt 100% better in semi-final, and now I felt like my old self in final.”
“You never forget how to compete, but being back after nine months, in the middle of the season, was not the easiest thing. I had a lot of doubts: ‘Am I ready? Am I not? Am I even motivated?’ But I’m so glad I came back, I enjoyed it so much.”
Next up for Garnbret is the lead competition at Innsbruck, with a qualification round on June 28 and finals on June 29. All eyes will be on Garnbret to see if she can pull off a double gold.
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