Anna Maria Apel (cover photo) and Yannick Nagel remain Germany's number one in lead climbing. Both successfully defended their titles at the German Championships in Darmstadt. While Apel had to wait anxiously until the very last moment, Nagel set the decisive mark in the men's competition.
Tension until the last minute for the women
The women's final could hardly have been more exciting: defending champion Anna Maria Apel and Annika Müller both achieved the same hold score on the final route. Because Apel had achieved the better result in the semi-final, the countback decided in her favor. This secured the athlete from DAV Munich & Oberland her third consecutive German championship title. Bronze went to local favorite Roxana Wienand.
This title means an incredible amount to me, because it was the most difficult season I've ever had. I'm all the happier that it was enough, even though I would have been just as happy for Annika to win it.
defending champion Anna Maria Apel
Yannick Nagel completes the title hat trick
The defending champion also prevailed in the men's competition. Yannick Nagel climbed the 62-hold final route to a grade of 55+, setting a high bar. As the last climber, Yannick Flohé could have overtaken the Mannheim native, but fell at 43+. Flohé took silver, and Luca Nündel completed the podium in third place.
When I came down from the wall, I was really happy because I'd been able to get so much out of myself. I'm especially proud of this third title because I often couldn't deliver the performance I wanted this season.
Yannick Nagel after his third victory at the championships
For Nagel, it was also his third German championship title in lead climbing. The final marked the end of a varied competition weekend, in which the qualification and semi-finals had already provided plenty of talking points with their unusual moves and routes.
The podium of the Lead German Championships 2026
Women
- Gold: Anna Maria Apel (DAV Munich & Oberland)
- Silver: Annika Müller (DAV Augsburg)
- Bronze: Roxana Wienand (DAV Darmstadt-Starkenburg)
Men
- Gold: Yannick Nagel (DAV Mannheim)
- Silver: Yannick Flohé (DAV Aachen)
- Bronze: Luca Nündel (DAV Rheinland-Köln)
You can find more information about the competition on the website of the German Alpine Club.
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Credits cover photo: DAV/ Pavlo Vekla