Tauranga teen speed climbing World Youth Champ
- Jul 22
- 2 min read
Tauranga 15-year-old Mila Piatek, has been crowned Youth World Champion in speed climbing this morning at the World Climbing Youth Championship
in Arco, Italy.
In the course of the competition, she also broke the Oceania women's open
speed record, with a time of 7.70s.
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Piatek, who trains with the Bay of Plenty Sport Climbing Association under coach Rob
Moore, delivered a standout performance on one of the sport's biggest stages to take the
world title in her category.
This win marks the second Youth World Championship title produced by Moore's coaching,
following Julian David's gold in the men's U20 speed event in 2023.
Moore's Mount Maunganui programme has also produced Sarah Tetzlaff, who went on to represent New Zealand alongside David at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
"I’m speechless," Piatek said after the final - something that the 20+ contingent supporting
the team in Arco found hard to believe coming from the bubbly teenager, not to mention the
100s following along on social media from New Zealand.
"Mila has shown that hard work and consistency, in a programme of wrap-around support,
breeds success. I couldn’t be more proud." Moore said.
Piatek's win comes as part of a large contingent of New Zealand youth athletes competing
across all three disciplines — boulder, lead and speed — at this year's championship, with a
significant number of the team hailing from Tauranga.
The record books took a hit elsewhere too, with several of Piatek's teammates also setting
new New Zealand records over the course of the competition.
“Speed Climbing has become the fastest growing discipline within the sport. Rob’s vision for
international representation just keeps bearing fruit. Two world youth champs, two
Olympians, and a solid pipeline of new talent coming through. New Zealand is standing out
on the world stage, and we look forward to more great results coming in this week, and
beyond”, said Climbing New Zealand president, Dion Clapperton.
The World Climbing Youth Championship is running in Arco, Italy, from 18–25 July 2026,
bringing together the world's best young climbers across boulder, lead and speed disciplines
in the Under 17 and Under 19 age categories.
