Janja Garnbret does Bibliographie (9b+)

Janja Garnbret has added another milestone to her remarkable climbing career by becoming the first woman to climb Bibliographie (9b+) in Céüse, one of the hardest sport routes in the world. Before her ascent, only five climbers had successfully completed the route.

The 35-metre route was bolted by Ethan Pringle in 2009 and first climbed by Alexander Megos in 2020. It is known as one of the toughest endurance challenges in sport climbing, with more than 80 difficult moves. Megos originally graded the route 9c after spending 60 days working on it. However, after the second ascent, Stefano Ghisolfi suggested a lower grade of 9b+, which has since become the widely accepted grade. Garnbret, 27, first tried the route shortly after the 2024 Olympic Games. She returned to Céüse several times and finally completed the climb on her fifth trip. © Jessica Glassberg/Red Bull Content Pool

”It feels incredible. It's honestly really hard to describe. When the send happens, everything is smooth, everything is perfect. You basically don't feel what you're climbing anymore. I think over the past five trips I learned a lot about myself. I learned a lot about Céüse and the route itself. I was maybe less nervous than on previous trips. I felt the strongest and felt like I was ready for the process. These two weeks really tested me in a way that nothing did before. It tested my patience.

On what was planned to be a warm-up on the route, I just felt perfect and kept going. I was just in my own bubble, in my own world, just doing what I love most. Unlike other days, not a lot of people were at the crag, so no loud cheering. It was one of the most serene moments in my rock climbing career.

This send is the accumulation of everything I learned over the past two years. This route taught me that with a calm mind and with patience, anything can happen. Never count yourself out – until the very last try, you need to fight hard. So, when it finally does happen, it’s an incredible feeling. All the work you’ve put in, all the commitment, the patience – when everything comes together, it feels incredible. Today my heart feels very full.

This is something that will stay with me forever. It will help me in future rock projects, in competitions, in training and whatever I do in life.

This send is the accumulation of everything I learned over the past two years. This route taught me that with a calm mind and with patience, anything can happen. Never count yourself out – until the very last try, you need to fight hard. So, when it finally does happen, it’s an incredible feeling. All the work you’ve put in, all the commitment, the patience – when everything comes together, it feels incredible. Today my heart feels very full.”