Team USA’s Brooke Raboutou won silver in the boulder and lead sport climbing final at the 2024 Paris Games on Saturday.
The 23-year-old from Boulder, Colorado, made history in the processes, becoming the first American woman to medal in the sport. It’s the second medal in sport climbing for Team USA after Sam Watson won bronze in the men’s speed event — and broke the world record in the process.
Janja Garnbret, the Slovenian who won the combined gold when sport climbing made its Olympic debut at the Tokyo Games three years ago, overcame Raboutou for the victory on the last climb of the day in Le Bourget to secure the gold. Jessica Pilz of Austria is taking the bronze.
Garnbret and Raboutou hugged and cried together in joy after the final.
Raboutout is currently ranked No. 3 in the world for combined lead and boulder. She made her Olympic debut in Tokyo, where she finished fifth in women’s combined sport climbing. She also finished second overall in boulder, sixth in lead and seventh in speed.
The University of San Diego alum has been climbing since the age of 2, with a pedigree in climbing — both her parents were world champion climbers in the 90s.
In Paris, Raboutou finished third in the bouldering semifinal and tied for fourth in the lead event. Her combined score of 155.8 put her in third place overall and helped her qualify for the final.
On Saturday, she reached the top of three of four boulder problems, earning a combined 84.4 points entering the lead round in third place overall. She followed that up with a 72 in the lead, guaranteeing herself a spot on the podium. It was just a matter how Pilz and Garnbret finished to determine which color medal she was taking home.
