4 December 2023
Schubert upgrades Clash of the Titans to 9b
Jakob Schubert says about his recent upgrade of Clash of the Titans to 9b. ยฉ Michael Piccolruaz
"It's been more than five years since I first tried the "Clash of the Titans" route at home in Tyrol. It was first climbed by Alex Megos in 2017. Alex rated it 9a+ at the time, but it always felt substantially harder to me. I've climbed quite a few 9a+'s and 9b's, but none of them took as much effort as this route. However, after sending it rather quickly last year, I was no longer sure if it really deserved an upgrade, so I was hesitant to post the ascent and have a clear opinion on the difficulty. After all, the route doesn't fit my preferred style, which is crimping, but there are quite a few open handholds on this route that gave me a hard time. Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to climb the route with Stefano Ghisolfi, who also took a look at the route and gave his opinion.
In general, I think we saw some kind of grade inflation in sport climbing over the last years and I feel itโs the responsibility of everyone who is capable of climbing the hardest grades to also give their honest opinion. Thatโs why Iโve downgraded some routes in the past. For the same reason, I now suggest an upgrade for โThe Clash of the Titans."
"It's been more than five years since I first tried the "Clash of the Titans" route at home in Tyrol. It was first climbed by Alex Megos in 2017. Alex rated it 9a+ at the time, but it always felt substantially harder to me. I've climbed quite a few 9a+'s and 9b's, but none of them took as much effort as this route. However, after sending it rather quickly last year, I was no longer sure if it really deserved an upgrade, so I was hesitant to post the ascent and have a clear opinion on the difficulty. After all, the route doesn't fit my preferred style, which is crimping, but there are quite a few open handholds on this route that gave me a hard time. Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to climb the route with Stefano Ghisolfi, who also took a look at the route and gave his opinion.
In general, I think we saw some kind of grade inflation in sport climbing over the last years and I feel itโs the responsibility of everyone who is capable of climbing the hardest grades to also give their honest opinion. Thatโs why Iโve downgraded some routes in the past. For the same reason, I now suggest an upgrade for โThe Clash of the Titans."
18 comments
Sort by:
Date
Reply
Most commented
Jorge Diaz-Rullo reports on Instagram that he has made the first ascent of Cafe Colombia in Margalef. At 27, heโs already stacked four 9b+ sends and now heโs adโฆ
26 January 2026
Sean Bailey FAโs Duality of Man (9c)
Sean Bailey reports on Instagram that he has done the first ascent of Duality of Man (9c) in Dry Canyon. โ After four total years and three seasons of climbing,โฆ
23 March 2026
Jorge Diaz-Rullo proposes 9c for Cafรฉ Colombia
Jorge Diaz-Rullo elaborates on the reasons for him to suggest 9c for Cafรฉ Colombia on Instagram, which he took down last week after projecting it for 240 sessioโฆ
Favorites
Jorge Diaz-Rullo reports on Instagram that he has made the first ascent of Cafe Colombia in Margalef. At 27, heโs already stacked four 9b+ sends and now heโs adโฆ
16 March 2026
Ondra flashes 3*8C in two weeks
โI stopped focusing on competition bouldering after last yearโs World Cup in Prague, partly because I can already feel it on my body, especially in my shoulders. The modern competition style, with a lot of jumping from one hold to another, is very demanding for the shoulders.
Outdoor bouldering isโฆ
26 January 2026
Sean Bailey FAโs Duality of Man (9c)
Sean Bailey reports on Instagram that he has done the first ascent of Duality of Man (9c) in Dry Canyon. โ After four total years and three seasons of climbing,โฆ
Favorites
Jorge Diaz-Rullo reports on Instagram that he has made the first ascent of Cafe Colombia in Margalef. At 27, heโs already stacked four 9b+ sends and now heโs adโฆ
16 March 2026
Ondra flashes 3*8C in two weeks
โI stopped focusing on competition bouldering after last yearโs World Cup in Prague, partly because I can already feel it on my body, especially in my shoulders. The modern competition style, with a lot of jumping from one hold to another, is very demanding for the shoulders.
Outdoor bouldering isโฆ
26 January 2026
Sean Bailey FAโs Duality of Man (9c)
Sean Bailey reports on Instagram that he has done the first ascent of Duality of Man (9c) in Dry Canyon. โ After four total years and three seasons of climbing,โฆ