Day two at the World Climbing Series Kraków 2026 concluded with another historic first as the inaugural Speed Mixed Relay titles were awarded. Sixteen teams – each made up of one woman and one man, with the order of climbing chosen by each nation – competed in the knockout finals, where Team USA set a new world record to claim the first gold medals in the event.

USA BREAKS 11-SECOND BARRIER

Samuel Watson and Emma Hunt capped a remarkable day by becoming the first team in history to break the 11-second barrier, stopping the clock in 10.89 seconds in the gold medal race.

The performance lowered the world and Pan American records for the second time in the finals, after the American pair had already improved both marks to 11.00 in the semi-final.

The victory completed a memorable double for Watson, who had earlier won the men’s Speed title, while Hunt celebrated her second world record of the day after becoming the first woman to race below six seconds on her way to bronze in the individual event.

Antasyafi Robby Al Hilmi and Desak Made Rita Kusuma Dewi of Indonesia 2 claimed silver in 11.30, giving Kusuma Dewi her second medal of the day after winning the women’s individual competition.

“It’s pretty crazy and exciting to have done this on Independence Day… happy Fourth of July!” Hunt said after the victory.

The American also praised the host city: “I love Kraków. It’s the coolest venue, the crowd is huge and they do an amazing job running this event. So getting to do it here and do it with Sam was just more than I can ask for.”

Watson recalled watching the decisive run unfold.

“The final race specifically was pretty cool. We had just done the 11.00 in the previous round, we were going pretty relaxed, I was feeling better, managing my skin and that last little bit of adrenaline. I did my run and saw that Emma was already at a point where she was much faster than I usually see her, and I thought: ‘This is going to be a great run!’ To watch her close was incredible.”

The American added that winning on the USA’s national holiday made the moment even more special.

“It means a lot to do it on Independence Day. I had to tell her it’s Independence Day, we took it very seriously. That was our best team hype-up moment, so we definitely pulled it off as a team.”

For the Speed Mixed Relay complete results click here.

RECORDS CONTINUE TO FALL

China 1, represented by Zhou Yafei and Zhao Yicheng, secured bronze after defeating Indonesia 2’s Raharjati Nursamsa and Rajiah Sallsabillah in the third-place race.

The Chinese pair stopped the clock at 11.17 seconds, setting a new Asian record. It was the fourth time the continental mark had been lowered during the competition, following three successive improvements by Indonesian teams: Robby Al Hilmi and Kusuma Dewi first recorded 11.44, Raharjati Nursamsa and Rajiah Sallsabillah then improved it to 11.42, before Robby Al Hilmi and Kusuma Dewi lowered it again to 11.19 in the semi-finals. Indonesia 1 finished fourth in 11.35.

Europe’s benchmark also fell repeatedly. Italy’s Ludovico Fossali and Giulia Randi first lowered the continental record to 11.93, then improved it to 11.85, before Ukraine’s Polina Khalkevych and Yaroslav Tkach reduced it further to 11.66.

Meanwhile, Watson and Hunt twice rewrote the world and Pan American records, first with 11.00 in the semi-finals before their historic 10.89 in the gold medal race.

HISTORIC WEEKEND FOR SPEED

The World Climbing Series Kraków 2026 marked the beginning of a new era for Speed climbing, with both the first four-lane World Climbing Speed competition and the international debut of the Speed Mixed Relay producing multiple world and continental records across two days of competition.

NEXT UP

The World Climbing Series Kraków 2026 will conclude tomorrow with the men's and women's Speed Relay: qualifications will start at 12:30 (UTC+2:00) and finals will close the event at 16:30.

News and updates about all World Climbing events will be available on the World Climbing website, and on the Federation’s digital channels: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Threads, TikTok, X, YouTube, and exclusively for the Chinese audience, Douyin, Weibo, and Xiaohongshu.