Laura Rogora, the Vertical-Life climber of 2025, repeated Adam Ondra’s Niobe (9a) last week in just four tries. ”I had watched Adam’s video, but not to checked the betas. Basically, before starting I only knew that after the first chain there was a palm-move boulder.”

World Climbing: ”The decision, that has been communicated to all World Climbing National Federations, lifts the suspension placed on the Russian (CFR) and Belarusian Federations (BACF), while maintaining the following provisions:

1. To allow the participation of athletes and team officials with Russian and Belarusian passports in international competitions under the Neutral Athletes Policy in place.
2. To not allow the organisation of international events in Russia and Belarus until further notice.”

Paul-Martin Luc has done the first ascent of öga för öga (8C) at Hultastenen. The project took shape during the summer of 2023 and developed into a multi-year endeavor marked by progress, setbacks, and ultimately full payoff. Along the way, he first completed Luftig kö till nålens öga (8B+) as well as the sit start den nattliga havsfärden (8B+), before shifting his entire focus to the full low start from Tvekampen (8A) into Nålens Öga—a long, steep, and highly physical line where power, body tension, and heel hooks are central.

In spring 2024, the project gained extra momentum when Adam Ondra visited the area. After a joint breakdown of the moves, Ondra flashed Luftig Kö Till Nålens Öga, one of the most talked-about flashes ever done in Sweden, and at the same time provided valuable context regarding the difficulty of the sector. That same day, several local climbers achieved personal bests, but for the project’s main protagonist the session ended with a hamstring injury that required a long rehabilitation and put the project on hold for more than a year.

After returning, the attempts continued methodically until the entire line finally went down. As for the grade, Öga för Öga is assessed as 8C. If Den Nattliga Havsfärden is considered 8B+, the link sits in the upper end of 8C; but if it is instead a solid 8C, the full line could be perceived as a soft 8C+. Regardless of the exact grade, the ascent is seen as the culmination of an unusually long and emotionally charged journey—where the end result carries more weight than the number.

Andy Lamb, with four 8C+’ to his name, has repeated Ethan Salvo’s IMAX (8C) in Squamish.

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
IMAX is a sick new one put up by Ethan last year. All comes down to a big jump to a good crimp at the top. Hands are good but it's hard to generate on the feet. Really nice line.

What are your 2026 plans?
Got a few international trips planned for this spring and summer. Might be moving later this year, so I'm trying to take advantage of my last spring in Squamish too

Tyler Thompson, who the last ten weeks has done six routes 8c+ or 9a, has repeated Ramon Puigblanque’s La Rambla (9a+) in Siurana. ”It felt surreal to get up this in a few days after struggling several years ago. Honored to experience this bit of history!”

Can you tell us more about the ascent and the process behind?
I initially tried La Rambla two years ago during my first trip to Europe. I spend 2 or 3 weeks on the route, but ultimately didn’t feel super close and abandoned the project for the last bit of my trip to climb some other classic routes. Since that trip I’ve had it in my mind and always wanted to come back with more endurance. Last summer I had a climbing trip in the states that gave me some confidence in my endurance and I planned another trip back to Siurana. In the fall I included a lot of outdoor climbing with a focus on long routes in my training and came feeling super prepared for the route. I climbed to the crux on my second try of this trip and felt significantly more consistent in the crux. We had some good conditions and I fought my way through the crux on my 4th day this year! It felt surreal to climb such a historic route that I have known about for so many years.

What are your next plan?
Planning on trying Jumbo Love (9b) in the spring! That’s as far ahead as I have planned.

Erik Cmiel, with two 8B+’ under his belt, has repeated James Webb’s Sleepwalker (8C+) in Red Rock (NV). ”15/16? [8C/+] This one means a lot to me. Most amount of time I’ve put into a project and truly a dream line .”

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
I first tried Sleepwalker on my first trip to Vegas during my freshman year of college, just messing around on it and not doing many of the moves. I started taking it seriously in February 2025 on a short weekend trip with my friend Ethan Freudenheim, where I quickly did most of the moves except the big move to the sloper. I got hooked on the process and went back a couple more times that winter.

In the fall, I made a couple more short trips but dealt with skin issues and illness that slowed my progress. Then in late January, I spent a week in Vegas with Kawa Club and had my best sessions yet. After driving back to Salt Lake City for two days of class, I turned around and made the six hour drive back to Vegas for one more weekend. I left at 5 am that Friday and ended up sending later that same day, almost exactly one year after my first serious trip. It was a perfect day with an incredible crew. The only downside was getting food poisoning from my celebratory sushi that night.

I’ve been climbing for about eight and a half years. I started in southern Minnesota, where I grew up, and spent most of my early years competing and making long drives whenever I had the chance to get outside. Access to rock was limited, so outdoor trips always felt like a big deal.

After moving to Salt Lake City for college, I began focusing more on outdoor climbing while still competing occasionally. Over the past few years I had a handful of smaller projects, but Sleepwalker was the first boulder I truly committed to, putting in more than ten sessions. Now I’m shifting toward a few projects closer to Salt Lake City and looking forward to dedicating more time to long term efforts.

Emma Vigneron, with three 8b+’ under her belt, has sent Cannabis direct (8c) in Roquevaire.

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
I actually started working on the route last year. After sending the right-hand version, graded 8b+, I naturally moved on to its neighbor, graded 8c. I completely fell in love with this route. The profile alone is insane — it starts off super physical with big holds and heel hooks, then the upper section is almost slabby, with flat-foot placements and tiny crimp holds. There are also tons of varied moves: heel hooks, dynamic moves, pinches, crimps…

I tried it for several weeks last year, and I think I kind of burned out. I kept falling at the exact same move session after session. And since I had already tried the right-hand version, I’d been working the shared lower section for months — I was just over it. I was sad not to have sent it, but even more than that, I was sad because I wasn’t enjoying it anymore. So I decided to stop. A few months later, I went back to it. I knew exactly what I needed to do to send it, and I was ready to try hard — I wanted it to be my first 8c. So I took time to dial everything back in. I did strength training with pull ups to cruise through the physical lower section, and I worked on my endurance to be able to make it to the top, because the only rest isn’t great, and last year my endurance just wasn’t there.

It was frustrating because when I started putting down real redpoint attempts, I fell several times on the very last move — and it’s a dynamic one, so it feels super random. Then it rained for almost a month, so I went back to training really hard. And on Sunday, I sent it. I hadn’t been back on it for two weeks, and it only took one run. I was cruising, I felt calm. Usually when I’m about to send, I’m fighting for it, I feel awful, I’m battling the whole way… but this time, no. It felt easy. I was ready.

What is your climbing background?
I started climbing in 2016 and spent four years doing only bouldering, both indoors and outdoors. Then in 2020, COVID arrived and the gyms closed, so I discovered sport climbing on crags with my ex-boyfriend because it was the only way to climb, and I slowly fell in love with this discipline. I climbed my first 7b+ in early 2020, and by the end of 2020, I had done my first 8a, La Femme en Rose at Saint-Léger du Ventoux.

What are your plans and ambitions for 2026?
I have quite a few projects left on the back burner, so there’s work ahead this year 😂. I’d really like to do La Tournée du Patron 8b+ at Saint-Léger, Slow Food 8b+ at Céüse, and À Fleur de Peau 8b+ at La Saume! Then I’d like to find another big project, but the route has to be a real favorite of mine, so I’m putting all my hopes on L’Idéal Chimérique, which is an 8c/+ at Saint-Léger! It looks pretty fun with some small dynos, and at this level, to really push myself, the route has to make me truly excited, so I’m hopeful and can’t wait to go check it out!

Aidan Roberts, with three 9A’s to his name, reports with an Instagram video that he in October flashed Klem Loskot’s classic Bügeleisen (8B+) in Maltatal.

” To flash felt like a pure challenge of execution. I had margin on each move, but not enough to make any mistakes. About as satisfying as it gets.

I’d wanted to visit Maltatal for years, and finally made it there in October with Katie Lamb . It was as much a holiday as a climbing trip. Low expectations meant relaxed sessions and plenty of rainy rest day trips to the Konditorei.”

Yannick Flohé, who last year became the first boulderer to flash an 8C, has done Bügeleisen Sit (8C) in Maltatal. In 2025, the 26-year-old also sent Excalibur (9b+) and was sixth overall in the Lead World Cup. (c) Elias Arriagada Krüger

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
I tried the stand start [8B+] a couple of years ago and found it pretty hard back then. Recently I went back for a day trip with Elias since it is only about three hours from Munich. I checked out a few of the moves, warmed up on the stand start and made it to the lip on one of my first tries. Unfortunately my skin was a bit cold and I dry fired off the crimp.

One try later I made it to the top again, but everything was covered in snow and ice so I slipped off the mantle. Then I had to get a ladder and clean everything up properly. Luckily I managed to send it shortly after.

I think it is one of my favorite 8C boulders, definitely my style. It did not feel too hard this time. I guess it is one of those boulders where you can either do it quite easily or not at all, since it is really all about finger strength. I will definitely come back at some point to try Mount Doom (9A) as well.

Marco Müller, who last year sent his second 9a+, has repeated Shawn Raboutou’s Story of Three Worlds (8C+) in Cresciano. It is a left stand start, including a possible no-hands rest, to the classical The Dagger (8B+). ”Around nine hand moves and a bit more foot moves until you’re in the Dagger with my beta. Breakdown for me is: 8B boulder into the rest, then 8A boulder and then Dagger.” (c) Vivienne Augustin

Can you tell us more about the ascent and the sessions needed?
I started trying Story of Three Worlds at the beginning of January. The downward dyno is one of the most unique moves on rock I’ve ever tried! It felt surprisingly good and suited me well. The opening boulder, however, gave me trouble for quite some time. It’s a powerful, tensiony section on underclings with bad footholds. Once I figured out my own beta, I started making some good links. There’s a good kneebar rest in the middle of the boulder. I underestimated the core fatigue, despite the rest, and fell a couple of times in the final section “The Dagger.” Last weekend, I finally made it through the whole boulder with a proper fight.

I‘ve tried it for like 1-2 a week since the beginning of January, and then lots of sessions on Story of Two Worlds and Dagger a couple of years ago.

What is next?
I was actually projecting Captain Nemo (8C) in Val Bavona, but when the weather turned bad, I switched to “Story of Three Worlds”. It immediately got me hooked. I was hoping to get back on Nemo again soon.