BURSTThe first Canadian event of the 2025 North American Cup Series (NACS) was held on May 3rd and 4th in Longueuil, Quebec. The bouldering competition saw 125 athletes competing at the Rose Bloc Longueuil gym. USA came away from the event with one gold and two silvers. Canada earned one gold and two bronzes.
The NACS was first launched by Climbing Escalade Canada (CEC) and USA Climbing in 2021.The mission of the series is to “provide a high-level competition series for advanced and elite athletes from the America’s to continue their development outside of World Cup competition.” CEC and USA Climbing are the national governing bodies for comp climbing in Canada and the USA respectively, as recognized by the International Olympic Committee and the IFSC.
The women’s final was a close one, with the top three competitors topping all four problems, leaving their podium separation to attempts. Canadian Madison Richardson ended up with gold, just 0.1 points (or one attempt) behind American Analise Van Hoang. Canadian Anna Kelley earned bronze. Richardson is one of Canada’s best competitive boulderers. On the IFSC Boulder World Cup circuit, she’s made the semi-finals six times: once in 2022, twice in 2023, and three times in 2024.
The men’s final in Longueuil was a tough one, with no athlete topping more than two problems. Americans Elijah Finn and Lukas Gerhardt placed first and second respectively, each topping two problems and reaching zone on the two others. Canadian Guy McNamee earned bronze with two tops and one zone.
Women’s Results
- Madison Richardson (CAN) 99.3
- Analise Van Hoang (USA) 99.2
- Anna Kelley (CAN) 98.6
- Carly Alba (USA) 69.4
- Babette Roy (CAN) 54.8
- Reena Gao (CAN) 54.4
- Eliza Graybill (USA) 54.4
- Caiya Taylor-Ainslie (CAN) 54.1
Men’s Results
- Elijah Finn (USA) 69.7
- Lukas Gerhardt (USA) 69.7
- Guy McNamee (CAN) 59.6
- Hugo Dorval (CAN) 54.7
- TJ Foley (CAN) 44.7
- Cruz Padilla (USA) 39.8
- Kindar McNamee (CAN) 29.9
- Zach Richardson (CAN) 29.8
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