Jose Agustí, who did his first and only 9a in 2017, has done El mon agermanat 8c+ in Sant Miquel del Fai. The 44-year-old says he has never trained on plastics but rather on rock and that onsights have been a great focus. Four years ago, he onsighted his 19th 8a+. (c) Carlos Pérez

"There are more than two years working on this route, a well known 8b+ first pitch, that I have done multiple times, but hard due to the crux move cause as it involves a better core than I was having the last years. In 2021, due to the confinement, I have been climbing a lot in Sant Llorenç del Munt Sescorts sector, where I recovered my core at levels of 2017, and this was the key.

I discovered the big cave of Sant Miquel del Fa in 2016 and step by step I have done almost all the routes there, including my first 9a. Since the beginning, I was travelling around Europe in order to onsight my best and in Rodellar I achieved my best, Alter ego 8b."

Very few of the Olympians are registered to compete in the Lead World Cups in Chamonix and Briancon probably creating the golden opportunity of the history. In Chamonix, five Olympians are registered to compete and then in Briancon, only Alberto Gines Lopez and Jessica Pilz are on the starting list. Based on the World ranking only one of the Top-10, respectively five of the Top-25, female are registered to compete in Briancon.

After the Olympics, there are one Lead WC in Slovenia coming up followed by the World Championship in Moscow. The last Lead World Cup of 2021 is scheduled in China in October. When it comes to the overall Lead World Cup, I would be surprised if even half of the Olympians will continue doing all the World Cups after Tokyo. In other words, 2021 should be the golden opportunity for all the non-Olympians to win overall or get the best ranking in their career. There will be new stars born in Chamonix and Briancon.

Vadim Timonov has done the first repeat of Dave Graham's Petrichor 8C in Rocklands, in just one session. The video of Graham shows that Vadim is just about to start climbing upside down in a totally unique sequence. Video is coming up in a couple of weeks. (c) Juliet Leonova

"I used 90% beta by Dave. Feels like only one beta for that boulder. It's hard for me to talk about the grade right now. It seemed to me that it is definitely more difficult than Amandla 8B+ and Shakey warrior which I have tried in the last days. I will try a few more 8Cs and I can use their example more accurately grading Petrichor. So far I can say that this is not the most difficult boulder in this grade, but it may be 8C anyhow. 5 stars qualitywise!"

Belgium dominated the Euro Youth Cup in Puurs last weekend getting three golds. Big nations like Italy and Germany did just get one medal each and also Austria continuous to struggle with just two bronzes.

02: Lucie Watillon BEL - Ties Vancraeynest BEL
04: Sabina Van Essen NED - Hannes Van Duysen BEL
06: Barvora Bernadova CZE - Gorazd Jurekovic SLO


The Speed event was totally dominated by Italy with four golds and four silvers. Most impressive was Marco Rontini (16) doing 6.20 beating also everyone in the Junior category.

Simon Lorenzi reports with an Insta video that he has done La force tranquille 8C in Magic Wood, in just five sessions. Next is Power of now which he was close on already during the first session. The 24-year-old won the Lead Youth World Champion in 2016 and the year after he did Action Directe 9a. Later he focused on comps but without any good results. Then suddenly in 2021, after he had done the FA of The Big Island 9A, he has been 7 - 12 - 5 in the three last Boulder WCs.

How can you explain your sudden extreme progress in the Boulder WCs?
I totally changed my way of training and focused on the technical, tactical and mental aspects this year. I almost did no specific physical training this year to focus on those others aspects. I'm working a lot more on slabs than before, I do a lot of simulation of competition and I'm working with a sport psychologist.

Interestingly, the 168 cm tall says that next is Power of Now 8C which he was close on already during the first session (in spite of not focusing on physical power training :)

"It was a place I wanted to visit for many years, but the logistics weren't super easy. The weather is a bit tricky up there: it rains quite often (this is also why the rock is so incredible) and it stays wet for more days. Even if the holds might appear dry on the surface, it is better to let more days of dry weather to let the fragile rock drying up properly. So my advice for visiting this place is to be really patient and plan it only when you have more days in a row.

The rock gets polished quickly, so we must be careful with chalk. As usual the wear and tear of sandstone happens if we climb.. It is only up to us to take care of this, protect it and to avoid that this process speed up."

Stefan Scherz, who won Euro Youth events in both Lead and Bouldering in 2019, has done his third 9a, Kein Licht Kein Schatten in Ötztal. "Best I've done so far. 4th ascent. Took me quite some time and nerves. Felt harder than anything I've done before." (c) Insta

How was the process taking it down and what is next?
I’ve been trying this route on & off for about a year now. The first few sessions I was on it, I tried the beta of Jakob Schubert which felt hard but definitely doable! Later, I switched beta in two different sections and I felt even more confident to send it. Winter hit Austria and I spent two desperate sessions trying with numb fingertips but realized I’ve to wait until spring to send it. It took me two sessions this year but finally, with good conditions, I was able to send it! Now, WC’s in Chamonix and Briançon are the next goals.

Nearly 1500 8a members have submitted their predictions so far. You can still join anytime up until the beginning of the competition in Tokyo! To give everyone more ways to collect points for the raffle, we have added six questions to the game. Submit your answers until the beginning of the competition to increase your chances of winning a prize.
Once the official results are announced, each answer and ranking you predicted correctly will earn you 100 points and one ticket towards the raffle. If you are among the participants with the most points, you will be entered into the raffle for the Adidas grand prize. All participants receive a one-month Vertical-Life Premium voucher, providing you with an extensive digital guidebook library, just in time for a summer road trip!

Alex Puccio has done her 73rd 8A+, Ain't no heaven for a thug in Wild Basin. Picture form her Insta, where she also comments. "This roof is pretty fun! Kinda like an outdoor gym. 😛".

Including also 8 8B+' and 39 8B's, the 32-year-old has the most impressive female tick list. When it comes to competitions, she has got one silver in the World Championship, two World Cup wins and eleven Nationals. In spite of this, she has had some bad luck with several serious injuries over the years.