Michaela Kiersch reports on Insta with a picture by Vladek Zumr that she has done Unendliche Geschichte 2 (8A) in Magic Wood. Later she also did Sofa Surfer (8A+).

Can you tell us more about those ascents?
Both were the only dry things in the forest at the time so it was logical to try them! I briefly tried SS last year and decided to prioritize other boulders instead, it was cool to come back and send it quickly! UG2 was extremely challenging for me because of the powerful start move so it's been really rewarding to see progress in that style.

How long will you stay in the area and what's next?
Maybe another week or so. Next, I’ll go home - ready for a break! It’s been a very busy and intense spring for me with lots of climbing and projecting.

Are you planning on going to work full-time after your Doctor's exam?

I actually have 2 jobs [currently]! I've been working part-time at 2 hospitals when I'm home. It's very flexible and I can create my own schedule, which has been ideal. Usually, I work on rest days 😉 What are your two jobs?
I am an occupational therapist (what I have my degree in) and I work in inpatient rehabilitation and neurological rehabilitation. My schedule varies every week depending on my training and travelling but I get in as often as I can.

As it stands, the 28-year-old is a contender for having the All-Time High best Combined route and boulder tick list. In just the last year, she has done around 35 boulders 8A to 8B+. In previous years, she was more focused on routes having completed a dozen routes 8c+ and harder. Michaela was #22 in her Boulder World Cup debut in 2010 at age 15 and the next year she was #18 in a Lead World Cup. From there, she put competitions to the side, and chose to focus on rock and University. Michaela did her first 8c and 8c+ at age 21. Interview from last year.

Francesco Berardino, who previously has done three 8B+ and The Story of Two Worlds (8C), reports on Insta that he has sent Off the Wagon Sit (8C+) in Valle Bavona. (c) Rainer Eder

What is your climbing background?
I started climbing at the age of 12 with my dad and since then I’ve been extremely passionate about this fantastic world. 3 years ago I saw the video of Shawn[Raboutou] doing Off the Wagon and from there, it was love at first sight. I also wanted to be able to climb the same boulders as in the Mellow YouTube channel. The next day I went to Val Bavona with my dad to try it, even though I knew it was beyond my level. But that was a great starting point because I soon started doing my first 8A’s and 8B’s in Magic Wood. The real turning point happened last year when I met Giuliano Cameroni, who later became a great friend. He gave me amazing advices on how to train my fingers. Since then my climbing fully evolved and I started listening to my body and started seeing and hearing things that I couldn’t perceive before. My vision of what’s possible improved a lot and I started trying boulders with movements at the limit of what’s possible. We are talking about 9A to 9B boulders.

I started trying one of these futuristic lines in Cresciano, right next to the famous Dreamtime. It’s a fantastic line, perhaps the most beautiful I’ve seen so far. It could be 9A stand and 9B sit. The key for me is to try extremely difficult lines that seem impossible at first but after a lot of tries, they become realistic projects. This was the main advice from Giuliano: the fastest way to improve in outdoor climbing is to try moves above our limit on small holds. With specific finger training, I feel like I will be able to do every move that’s possible for my body.

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
I started trying the stand three years ago and was very close to sending it several times, then in February this year I decided to remove the wagon and start trying from below and in 3 months [15 sessions more or less] I managed to send it.

What does a normal climbing/training week look like?
Lately, when I’m at home I’m training every day to reach my maximum potential. When I go out to climb the best workout for me in a top week would be; to try very hard projects and then go back to try 8C\8C+ and feel the best grips let’s say.

William Bosi has done the first repeat of Aidan Robert’s Isles of Wonder Sit (8C) in Ogwen valley, and here is the video. ”Really happy to send this king line! I think my beta is easier than Aidan's so I think 8C is fair.

During the last 12 months, Will has done two 9A’s, two 8C+’ and eighth 8C’s and his 8a annual score is 12 403, which is the highest ever achieved. However, in the All time-high list, Bosi is #5 after Woods, Webb, Ondra and Cameroni.

Can you tell us more about the ascents, the new beta and the number of sessions needed?
It took three sessions total counting my first day where I did the stand a couple of years ago. I had my second session on Friday and dropped the last move a couple of times before deciding to stop and return yesterday.

I used the starting heel hook for the first two moves rather than just the first which meant I was able to avoid the shoulder move being as savage.

Martin Stráník, #2 in the Boulder WCH in 2007 and #4 in the Lead WCH in 2021, has repeated Adam Ondra's To Tu Ještě Nebylo (9a) in Labské údolí. "Hardest route on CZ sandstone! Tried occasionally the last years and this spring focused on it more and did it on my 4th session. So cool route, intense 17m of climbing without rest." (c) Jan Simanek

What is the route's background?
Germans bolted from the top, which is against the rules, then bolts were removed and Ondra Beneš started bolting from the ground. He put three bolts and then Adam [Ondra] added the 4th bolt. Adam made the FA and the others ascents are: Alex Megos, Felix Neumarker and Ondra Beneš.

What are your competition plans this year?
All lead WC, Prague and Brixen boulder WC ;)

Soratu Anraku (16), the Lead Youth World Champion the last two years, won the semifinal in the Salt Lake City Boulder World Cup and topped all four boulders in the final. Tomoa Narasaki won the qualification and was runner up in the semi. In the final, Tomoa flashed the first boulder and in the end, he only needed six attempts for the four boulders. Toby Roberts got his first podium after being third and fourth in the previous rounds. Complete results

Overall, the route setters were spot on with the difficulty of the boulders with more tops than usual, although nobody topped all 13 boulders. Mejdi Schalck, who won both the two first rounds in Asia, did not participate in SLC.

Duygu Haug, who did her first 8b at age 36, has done "Kanatlarım var Ruhumda" (8c) in Çitdibi. ”Pure happiness and emotional! Some routes mean a lot to me and this route is one of them and shining on the wall. Thanks to my husband [Tobi] for bolting, for patient belayings and creating amazing line as always. My pleasure to climb your routes. Can be soft or not I can not say something for the grade but I had some spicy moves as short person.” (c) Ann Smolenskaya

Can you tell us more about the ascent and the name of the route?
The route name “Kanatlarim Var Ruhumda” (eng: My Soul has Wings) comes from a famous Turkish pop song. The song is about freedom for women in relationships, it is telling about a girl that doesn’t want to commit only to one connection. Also it’s about finding your own way with all mistakes, failures, happinesses... The song described kind of good the process which I had with this route. I touched this route first time 2 years ago but I never committed 100% to focus on it. In between doing a lot of other climbing, I came back from time to time to the route without too much expectations. Finally my wings carried me up to the chain without too much bad wings :)

How much do you train and climb in a normal week?
I do only rock climbing , 4-5 times a week. I do not train. Sometimes we climb a lot of routes in a day in between 7c-8a (the routes which we climbed before). Try to climb the routes with different beta or skip the rest position and not doing kneebars.

Austin Purdy, who the last month did his fourth 8C, has sent Delirium (8C) in Mt Evans.

Can you tell us more about the ascent? Sure! I tried Delirium for a few sessions two years ago and got fairly close to sending, but the weather ended up getting too warm and then I had a few small injuries so I never made it back. This year I decided I needed to get the boulder done so I started biking up the road to Lincoln Lake before it opened for the season to get good conditions and so I had time to do the problem before it got too hot. It turns out I didn't actually need much extra time though because I sent it without too much trouble this time around.

How long is the biking, what about pads and what is the altitude?
It is around 6 miles uphill and the climbing at Lincoln Lake is at around 12,000 feet [3 650 meters]. I used an electric bike with pedal assist and I think it took around 35-40 minutes with the pads strapped to the back.