6/19/11 - Daniel Woods narrowly missed a first-place finish at the Netherlands Bouldering World Cup this weekend in Eindhoven. After flashing the fourth finals problem, Woods was vying for first, but Kilian Fischhuber snagged a finish on his second go, securing his gold medal. France's Francois Kaiser finished third.
On the women's side, typical top finishers Anna Stöhr (Austria) and Akiyo Noguchi (Japan) were battling it out for first. It came down to the fourth problem: after Melissa Le Neve of France climbed the problem on her second go, securing her bronze medal, Stöhr fell from the last hold on her first go. Her next attempt was successful, but Noguchi flashed the problem, putting her in first.
Woods was the only U.S. competitor to make it to finals (and the only American man to compete), but Alex Johnson and Alex Puccio (who have participated in every World Cup thus far this season) managed to finish ninth and 10th, respectively. Courtney Sanders, the only other American woman to compete, finished 35th. Puccio is now ranked third overall—she still has a good shot to medal overall—behind Stöhr and Noguchi. Johnson is ranked eighth. Fischhuber, Sharafutdinov, and Guillaume Glairon Mondet lead the men's rankings.
Next up is the World Cup in Barcelona, Spain, on June 25 and 26.
