Tereza Širůčková does C'est la vie (8c+)

Tereza Širůčková, who was #14 and #16 in her two first Lead World Cups in 2025, has had an amazing week, sending Jaxitax (8B) in Moravský kras and C'est la vie (8c+) in Alternatívna stena / Červenica.

Can you tell us more about the 8c+ ascent?
C’est la vie was recommended to me by Adam Ondra — which in itself meant a lot. The fact that he believed I could do a route of this level really pushed me forward. It’s located in Slovakia, in the area called Alternatívna Stena. The route climbs through a massive overhang inside a cave, actually, it’s almost a roof. Funny thing is, most routes in the cave lead outward, but this one bends deeper inside. That really caught my attention, it felt quite unusual and intriguing.

It starts with a few long moves on good holds leading up to the first kneebar. From there, it kicks into a bouldery sequence of about 11 powerful moves, followed by three harder ones into a big rest. From that point, there’s still an 8a section to the anchor.

I tried it for the first time about a month ago. When I arrived, the route was filthy, full of spiderwebs and dust. So the first attempt was obvious: cleaning duty. I have to admit, I was pretty frustrated. It felt a bit ridiculous to be trying something this hard when it wasn’t even clear where the route went, there were no chalk marks at all. On top of that, I have a huge fear of spiders, so mentally, cleaning it was a serious challenge.

That same day, I gave it my first try. The rock was a little damp, but surprisingly, I managed to figure out all the moves and came up with a really nice beta. I was actually shocked by how well it went. On the way home, I couldn’t stop talking about the route, I was totally hooked.

About a week later, I went back. This time, the route was completely condensed. I still decided to go through the moves again, but it became clear that this would be a very condition-dependent project. With temperatures rising, I started to wonder if I’d have to wait until autumn.

Then came this weekend. I saw a slight drop in temperatures, and when I got the message that the wall was dry, I knew I had to go. I went through the moves again and couldn’t believe how dry the route was. So I gave it a first real go and made it surprisingly far. For the first time, I truly believed it could happen. Unfortunately, I slipped on the next attempt. I immediately called my coach (Petr Klofáč) and told him how unbelievably dry it was and that I had to go again the next day. Luckily, he agreed.

After one more failed try (a foot popped), I sent the route on my 9th attempt (4th real try), on my fourth day on it. This ascent means a lot to me — it’s the first female ascent of the route, and only the third overall, after nine years without a repeat. As a cherry on top, I also managed to send a technical 8b+ the same day.