Sachi Amma does Sleeping Lion (9b)

Sachi Amma, with three 9b’s under his belt, has repeated Chris Sharma’s Sleeping Lion (9b) in Siurana. In total, it took the 37-year-old some 30 days over four trips to send. (c) Jan Novak

”Sleeping Lion’ felt like a massive mirror reflecting the emotions hidden deep inside me. Anger, sadness, loneliness. But also joy and excitement. The route has been a significant journey for me as a climber. ”

Sachi stopped competing after he won the World Cup in 2014. The next year he did five 9a+’ and his first 9b. In 2016, Sachi shared some philosophical thoughts in an 8a/Vertical-Life interview: Changed Horizon. "I can not find any value to be a better person by comparing myself with other climbers. That is why I stopped competing...."

What made you first attracted to the route?
When I first heard that Sleeping Lion had been established by Chris Sharma, and saw the footage of him climbing it, I immediately thought, “I want to try that.” A steep limestone wall where you keep moving dynamically, only to face the final crux when you’re completely exhausted—it felt like a route that suited me perfectly. But in reality, there were fewer sections where I could truly use my strengths, and I struggled more than I expected.

What was most challenging?
Sleeping Lion can be divided into four main sections. Each section by itself comes relatively quickly, but once you try linking two or three of them, you’re suddenly faced with a completely different level of difficulty. I always felt like I could climb it someday, but I had absolutely no sense of how far away that “someday” was. That uncertainty was the hardest part of the challenge.

How many sessions was needed for the send?
Over the past two years, I organized four trips. The first was one week, the second and third were three weeks each, and the fourth was four weeks. The third trip fell during a period of heavy rain, and I was only able to try the route for five days. In total, I think I spent around 30 days actually working on the route.

What is your 2026 plan?
I am thinking to go Ceuse in June and Squamish in Summer. And then I will decide if I go deeper into hard sport route or Yosemite in the winter season.