One Month After Dislocating Her Shoulder, Natalia Grossman Becomes USA Boulder National Champion

The USA Boulder National Championship semi-finals and finals were held yesterday, with Natalia Grossman and Hugo Hoyer coming out on top. Joining Grossman on the podium were Brooke Raboutou in second and Melina Costanza in third. Cozmo Rothfork and Sergey Lakhno placed second and third to Hoyer.

Grossman’s win was a huge victory for her in more ways than one. After a year of recovering from an ACL and Meniscus surgery in early 2025, she revealed that one month ago, she dislocated her shoulder. The news came last week in a post by Grossman, in which she expressed uncertainty about her path moving forward.

“At the start of this year, I partially dislocated my shoulder, which has led to multiple complications and the decision of whether to pursue surgery or see how far physical therapy can take me,” said Grossman on Instagram. “On what feels like the rare occasion I’m able to climb, it’s often accompanied by anxiety, stress, and overwhelming pressure. The pain, uncertainty, and constant decision-making can feel unbearable.

“With Nationals and Team Trials approaching, I’m not sure how much I’ll be able to participate. Right now, my focus is on continuing physical therapy and listening to my body, giving myself permission to make the choice that’s right for me, regardless of external expectations. I’ve been a bit quieter on here lately as I’ve been working through all of this, but I appreciate the continued support”

In her post-competition interview, Grossman said she initially thought she hadn’t qualified for finals, but was told she did make it after all. After grappling with her new injury throughout the qualification round and semi-finals, she admitted that the news that she qualified for the finals came with mixed feelings. When she topped the fourth problem of the finals, her third flash of the night, she was overcome with emotion.

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Grossman and Costanza were the only climbers in the women’s comp to top the first problem. This was an important top for Costanza, and gave her the points needed to podium. Raboutou had a tough time with the coordination start of problem #1, and while she achieved zone on her first go on problem #3, she was unable to top it. Grossman had an incredible round, flashing three of the four final problems.

The climbers in the men’s gender category faced a tough set of problems in the finals. As usual, there were four problems in total, but three of them did not see any tops. The final problem was flashed by Lakhno, allowing him to soar to third place – Hoyner was able to top this one on his second go. Rothfork consistently achieved zone for all problems, including problem #3, which did not see zone from any other finalists.

Men’s Results

  1. Hugo Hoyer – 44.9
  2. Cozmo Rothfork – 39.1
  3. Sergey Lakhno – 34.9
  4. Landers Gaydosh – 29.8
  5. Auggie Chi – 29.5
  6. Vail Everett – 20.0
  7. Joe Goodacre – 20.0
  8. Joshua Gerhardt – 10.0

Women’s Results

  1. Natalia Grossman – 84.9
  2. Brooke Raboutou – 69.2
  3. Melina Costanza – 54.5
  4. Adriene Akiko Clark – 53.8
  5. Analise Van Hoang – 44.8
  6. Nekaia Sanders – 38.8
  7. Jojo Chi – 34.9
  8. Khadija Magali (Km) Suleman (EA) – 29.8
  9. Kailyn Leong (EA) – 19.9
  10. Norah Chi – 10.0

2026 USA Climbing Boulder National Championships

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