Jakob Schubert sends Qui (9a+)
Jakob Schubert reports on Instagram that he has sent Qui (9a+) at the Geisterschmiedwand. The Austrian projected it last year, and he sent it on his second go this year. It was put up in 1996 by Stefan Fรผrst, as an 8c+, and Adam Ondra did the first repeat in 2019 suggesting an upgrade to 9a+ and he commented, "possibly something has broken, but very possibly it has not got much harder due to breaks." Later Alfons Dornauer and Roland Hemetzberger sent it confirming Ondra's upgrade. (c) Misha P

Nearly 2,000 hectares of Font Forest destroyed by wildfire
Exceptional wildfires are currently sweeping through parts of France's Fontainebleau Forest. Located around 70 km south-east of Paris, the UNESCO Biosphere Reseโ€ฆ
Annie Sanders wins again
Annie Sanders continued her impressive 2026 campaign by winning in Chamonix, following finishes of first, first and second in the season's opening three Lead Woโ€ฆ
Loic Zehani FA's Quartiers Nord (9b)
Loic Zehani has done the FA of Quartiers nord (9b) in Orgon, which is a new six-bolt start to Bronx (8c+), bolted by his father. (c) Samantha Ducos

โ€In total I think this route took me around twenty sessions. Amazing first part, natural and so powerful. Maybe 8B boulder out of the first twelve movements followed (without rest) by 10 movements around 7C/C+ boulder. After that you climb the second part of Bronx (8c+). Crazy morning when I sent it twice in one hour because the wind had knocked down the camera during the first send ... the second send the camera (positioned in the car ) did not fall! The conditions are amazing with a massive south-east wind.โ€

Ainhize Belar Barrutia, 17, completes Panorรกmix (8c)
Ainhize Belar Barrutia, who did her first 9a in May, has sent Panorรกmix (8c) in Araotz/Oรฑate, after trying it for three days. The picture, (c) Javi Pec, is from when she was #2 in the Spanish Cup two weeks ago.

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
Since itโ€™s a route with a lot of tricky kneebars and Iโ€™m not very used to them. It was pretty hard initially but when I managed to get all these little tricks, I did it pretty quickly

Dai Koyamada, 47, makes the FA of Okuro (8C)
Dai Koyamada reports on Instagram that after two years of work he has done the FA of Okuro (8C) at Kasagi.

Dai first made headlines in 1998 when he was #4 in a Lead World Cup. After quitting the comp circuit, he did his first 9a in 2002 and the next year he did his first 8C boulder. Over the last 20 years he has done close to 40 8Cโ€™s and most of them have been FAs.

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Tara Hayes completes Fat Lip (8B)
Tara Hayes, who has done five 8A's this summer, has sent Fat Lip (8B) in Peak District. The 26-year-old finished her competition carrer last year after being part of the GB team for 15 years.

โ€I first tried Fat Lip back in May to see if it was a realistic project for me close to home. Both of the crux moves revolve around knacky heel hooks which suits my style, so I actually made quick progress to begin with. The moves are fun and there was a lot of beta to learn and refinement to be made, so staying psyched wasn't an issue.

I managed to climb it from a few moves in on my 4th session, linking both crux sections into the end. Unfortunately, on my next go from the start as I pulled on the pocket, I felt a tear down my forearm. That session ended abruptly there and later I found out I had an injury to the lumbricals and flexor tendon.

After a 4 month break to let my fingers recover, I started trying it again and managed to re-learn the moves quickly. For the past month I've been going frequently to gain efficiency and give myself the best chance of sending it before the crag starts to seep (which is normally around November).

I think in the end, a combination of good conditions, being rested and having the right level of focus allowed me to execute the moves really well and therefore not be too powered out for the end section. It's the most sessions I've had on a boulder so I'm really psyched to have sent it!โ€


Why do you think your latest senes have coincided with you having stopped competing?
I think I was able to prioritise training for Fat Lip specifically rather than my training focusing on comps, where a lot of the exercises and moves don't necessarily translate to outdoor climbing. I was also able to rest more for better quality sessions without worrying about comprising my comp climbing form and missing sessions.