Moretti and Thibaut tick Condé de choc (9a)

Lilian Moretti and Collard Thibaut have climbed Condé de choc (9a) in Entraygues. (c) Elie Guilbot

Can you tell us your background story for sending the route?
Moretti: The process started in 2023 for me. After sending, I wanted a harder project to challenge myself, and the next logical step was « Conde ». During the summer of 2023, a lot of close friends of mine sent the route (Adrian Houbron, Justin Deschamps, Quentin Guillen, Victor Guilermin, Diego Fourbet, Jules Marchaland), which was super motivating!

The route consists of two boulders (8A+ and 7C/+) separated by a good rest. At the very end of the season, I was able to pass the first boulder twice in the same session for the first time. Unfortunately, I fell at the very end of the second part...

At the beginning of the 2024 season, I was able to pass the first boulder quite quickly two times again (without a preclip this time), but once again I fell... After that, I started working in Briançon and it was over for the summer. In the fall, the road to the crag was totally destroyed and it was impossible to try the route.

In 2025, I had only one good session on the route before I injured my right leg. After that, I tried the route using only my left leg during the whole summer, but I wasn't able to send it. This year, I was pretty confident about passing the first boulder because of my winter bouldering training. On my first session, I fell again on the last boulder. The next session, the story was the same. I came back two days ago with a lot of expectations because of the incredibly good conditions. Around 3 p.m., Thibaut sent the route with a super good run.

For me, the send go was the craziest fight of my life. At 8 p.m., I started my attempt and fell on the first move of the first boulder. Then I tried again immediately and fell on the last hard move of the first part. At that moment, I said to myself, « Fuck it, try again for training ». So I restarted immediately once again, passed the first part, and fought all the way to the top!!

In the end, I did the route with the first three quickdraws preclipped, and Adam Ondra remains the one and only person who has done it without a preclip :) Tony Lamiche, who did the FA, also started with them preclipped. If you fall with the rope in your hand, you can come back to the ground. Adam said: "Clipping the third bolt is the crux."

Thibaut (in the picture): It all began with a much-needed breath of fresh air. For nearly five years, I had been pouring my energy into San ku kai, an 8c+ at the same crag. I was incredibly close to sending it early on, but the process eventually stalled: for about fifty sessions, I kept falling on the exact same move. Realizing it had become a psychological barrier, I decided to take a step back and shift my focus to something else.

At the end of last season, in September 2025, I decided to look at Cordée de choc (8c/+), which is the first half of the full line Condé de choc. The style is fierce: a crimpy 8A+ boulder problem (V12) followed by a relatively easy 7b finish. It took me just three sessions to send this finger-intensive crux. Right after the send, I did a quick exploratory lap on the upper section and managed to do all the moves of the second boulder problem, which clocks in around 7C (V9). A spark was lit: the next logical step was to link the two halves together and target my first 9a for the upcoming summer.

Winter passed, and the time finally came to return to the crag. Last weekend, I headed out to Entraygues for what I intended to be a proper rehearsal and dial-in session. During my first lap of the day, I felt remarkably strong and precise in the movements.

I decided to give it a first proper burn from the ground, without expecting much. To my absolute surprise, I cruised right through the 8c/+ introductory section and stuck the second boulder problem. Suddenly, I found myself higher on the wall than I had ever anticipated so soon. Realizing that the send was actually happening, panic set in, and I blew it on the easier finishing terrain. Despite the fall, I was ecstatic and realized that the project would go much faster than planned. Exhausted and intending to return the next day, I initially decided to call it a day.

Ultimately, I changed my mind and decided to pull on for one final « training run » with zero pressure. That’s when everything clicked. I stuck the bottom crux, floated through the top crux, and this time, knew exactly what to do. Before I knew it, I was clipping the anchors. It was a surreal, wild moment—all the more incredible because it was completely unexpected. In the end, it took just four sessions in total to clip the chains on my first 9a.

The only downside to this perfect day was that I had to leave the crag right after my send, missing the run of my climbing partner, Lilian Moretti, who has also been projecting this line for the past four years. I only found out the next day that he had sent it too! Learning that we both crossed the finish line almost together made the whole experience that much more special, and left me feeling incredibly happy for him.