Said Belhaj has done the 23rd repeat of Action Directe in Frankenjura which Wolfgang Gullich opened in 1991. Today it is considered the world’s first 9a. Ray Demski ”First time I went to the Frankenjura was in -96 but AD was not even a fantasy to climb at the time. Then in -15 I went up to check the moves for the 1st time. Everything seemed possible exept the jump in the start. This spring I tried for 1 week and managed all the moves. On this trip, with 1 month of preparation I was back. I felt weaker than in the spring and the progress went backwards in the end during a 3 week period. I was also very warm for the season which didnt make it easier for me as some moves were in my limit. After a 5 day break from AD, climbing in Margalef, I came back. The temps had dropped and I felt well rested. I sent the same day on my 2nd go. To be honest I never thought I would do it this season but hoped that resting and better conditions would make miracles -and so they did. The route and its history was the only true reason I wanted to do it as its somehow been a part of my life since I started climbing.”

Katha Saurwein, one of the best female multi discipline climbers, has done her first 8b trad, Tainted Love in Squamish. (c) Jon Glassberg "I knew I wanted to try ‘Tainted love’ before coming here as this stemming corner with an almost closed crack in the corner and blank sidewalls, first ascended by Hazel Findlay looked stunning. It’s about fifteen to twenty meters high and is protected by small offset wires and one cam. At first both Jorg (Verhoeven, who also did it) and I had a hard time getting off the ground, we didn’t know how to move, how to position our body. From session to we got a better feeling for the open dihedral and at one point we both had our own beta worked out, which was actually quite different, due to our height difference. On our fourth session our goal was to get used to placing the gear, but as I started climbing it felt great, so I just kept on going. I was so focused on my climbing that I wasn’t really scared, and as I slowly made it higher and higher I found myself up top before realizing what had happened."

Joe Kinder has done the FA of Diarrhea Mouth 9a in Rifle. His winter plan is working and to do an extension of his Bone Tomahawk 9a+ which could be his first 9b. (c) Steve Rokks "Done deal. Bolted May 2017, tried on 4 separate mini-trips since May 2018 when my career imploded. Super aggressive crux in a horizontal roof. I think I calculated 30 days. Life is different now, but I'm still going hard so fuck it all. Climbing is my love and passion and it's what I will always remember no matter what. All I need is the belief and support from the ones who love me."

karoline sinnhuber, who previously has done four 8B's, has done Die perfekte welle sit 8A+ in Ötztal. In total, the Austrian who was #8 in the Boulder WC in Munich this year, has done 66 boulders 8A and harder. © Manuel Schof

Mathieu Holtz, who started out 2018 having done nine 8c's during the last six years, has done his second 9a, Bain de Sang in St Loup. Including also three 8c's, we asked 32-year-old, how he can explain this great progress. "Since I became a dad last year I’ve had less time for myself. I’ve put a lot more effort in my training so that I was able to make the most out of my free time. St Loup is a crag that perfectly suit my climbing style, like Bellosset. I don’t have any time to waste anymore and I always try to switch my mind into fighting mode so i can make every day out climbing count."

Jessica Pilz, the Lead World Champion, got her second WC victory in Xiamen by topping both the semi and the final route. Janja Garnbret was runner up by topping the final but not the semi. Interestingly, Slovenia had four girls in the final and Japan three. 1. Jessica Pilz AUT - Domen Skofic SLO 2. Janja Garnbret SLO - Stefano Ghisolfi ITA 3. Akiyo Noguchi JPN - Hyunbin Min KOR Complete results (c) Eddie Fowke Among the male, Domen Skofic won over Stefano Ghisolfi also on countback from the semi as they reached the same hold in the final. For Domen this was the first victory since 2016 when he won overall by winning three events.

1. Janja Garnbret SLO 550 - Jakob Schubert AUT 495 2. Jessica Pilz AUT 505 - Stefano Ghisolfi ITA 466 3. Jain Kim KOR 354 - Romain Desgranges/Domen Skofic 356 4. Manon Hily FRA 238 5. Mei Kotake JPN - 228 - Hyunbin Min KOR 251 Complete results (c) Eddie Fowke