Shanghai’s Zhao Yicheng claims Victory at National Rock Climbing Championships, Wu Peng Secures Silver in Return from Injury
Shanghai, September 6, 2025 - Zhao Yicheng of the Shanghai team triumphed in the men’s speed climbing final at the National Rock Climbing Championships today, edging out wu Peng of the Hunan team who secured silver in his highly anticipated return to competition.
The showdown between Zhao Yicheng and Wu Peng had generated notable excitement. Zhao Yicheng expressed his anticipation, stating, ”I am looking forward to climbing with Brother wu Peng because he is really amazing. This is the first time I met him in a competition. I am relatively relaxed, so I just want to focus on this climb. Standing on the podium with him also gave me more motivation because I also want to climb faster.”
Wu Peng was competing in his first event since sustaining a left ring finger injury in March. Despite the injury, he displayed a positive attitude throughout the competition, frequently smiling during his climbs.He attributed his win to luck, saying, “I was quite relaxed today because my goal was not too high…I made basically mistakes today, but I always won after the mistakes. After I came down,I always felt like ‘why did I win again’,so I mainly have good luck. I hope I will not use luck next time, but strength (win the game).”
wu peng’s times – 5.41 seconds, 5.16 seconds, and 5.67 seconds - remain slower than his personal best of 4.77 seconds, achieved during qualification for the Paris Olympics. He confirmed that approximately 90% of his finger injury has healed,but ongoing recovery continues to impact his training. He also revealed he is currently managing minor injuries to his fingers, wrists, ankles, and shoulder, necessitating a focus on recovery and careful training.In the women’s competition, Hunan athlete Deng lijuan, a Paris Olympic runner-up, claimed the championship title.
(Editor: Luo Zhizhi, Yang Di)
