Julia Chanourdie 9b interview

Fanatic Climbing has made a full length interview with Julia Chanourdie after she became the third women to have done a 9b through Eagle-4 in St Léger. Amazingly, the Olympian could do all the moves during her first session and overall it just took her ten days out of which some in bad conditions. (c) Julia Cassou

Can you tell us about the process, from discovery to sending?
I checked out the moves for the first time in September. I was able to do all the moves of the hard bottom part the first time I tried it. So, I took my time and checked out the rest of the climb which was supposedly easier but remained quite intimidating nonetheless. In total, the process took ten days of working on the climb. It seems like little time, which is why it is still hard to realize what I just achieved. But I know that I’ve been feeling particularly strong these days. I felt good training, and also at the crag. In addition, the style of the climb suited me well as it was all about power, grip strength and short power endurance. In this climb there is no room for tricks, you either pull on the holds, or you don’t.
Late October, I learned that the French team would not go to European championships, so I changed my plans and decided to spend some time in Saint Léger. Early last week, some holds were still wet and I decided to take some time to dry them out to be able to give the route proper tries. Before that, it was difficult for me to get on it with a real intention to send. But once I decided to actually try to send, my desire for success surpassed everything.