Korean men miss out on speed final at climbing world championships at home

Shin Eun-cheol of Korea reacts after completing his climb during the men's speed event at the Paris Olympics at Le Bourget Sport Climbing Venue in Le Bourget, France, Aug. 6, 2024. Yonhap

No Korean will compete in the final of the men's speed event Thursday at the ongoing sport climbing world championships on home soil.

Shin Eun-cheol finished as the top Korean in 19th place in the men's speed qualification of the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC) Climbing World Championships at Olympic Park in southeastern Seoul. Only the top 16 of the 63 climbers in action advanced to the final, scheduled for Thursday evening.

In speed, the goal is to reach the top of a 15-meter wall as quickly as possible.

Of his two attempts, Shin's fastest time was 5.161 seconds.

Jung Yong-jun was the next best Korean at No. 20 with a time of 5.199 seconds.

Choi Jong-bin (46th) and Lee Yong-su (48th) ended well out of contention.

Zach Hammer of the United States topped the qualification in 4.809 second. The defending champion from Italy, Matteo Zurloni, was sixth in 4.996 seconds.

Korea has never won a world championships medal in speed. Jeong Ji-min came close in the women's event Wednesday night when she finished in fourth place.

The world championships will continue Friday with the semifinals and finals in the men's and women's lead. Lee Do-hyun in the men's event and Seo Chae-hyun in the women's event are medal hopefuls for Korea.