Sebastien BOUIN reports on Insta that he has done the FA of Mar de Bering 9a/+ in Meio Mango. "We are always amazed to be in a such beautiful place." Here is a recent interview with Seb, from last week, who in 2022 did four routes 9b/+. (c) Clarisse Bompard

Meio Mango is a hidden seacliff pearl located some 45 min south of Lisbon. Here is how Andre Neres described the crag back in 2019 when he had done the FA of Filipinos (9a). "Meio Mango is easily one of the best unknown crags in Europe, it has 10 years of existence, it is a seacliff 45 min south of Lisbon on a place called Cabo Espichel, over 150 routes together with a new sector we are bolting called Atlântida. Plenty of easy and medium routes and a lot of potential for hard stuff. With breathtaking sunsets, no phone connection, no human constructions, and dolphins cruising around frequently, it is a paradise by the sea."

Francesco Morandi has done Pungitopo (8c+) in Arco. The 29-year-old bolted it a couple of years ago and last year he invited Adam Ondra to try it out and he did the FA in September, on his second session. "Possibly Arco's most aesthetic hard line," Ondra commented in his video. (c) Stefano Ghisolfi

What is your climbing background?
I climb since I was 8 years old and I have climbed indoors until 15, having a couple of years break. I was feeling too much pressure from the competitions and I wasn't having fun anymore. So I quit the indoor competition world and decided to climb just for and against myself outdoors. That was my path.

Could you tell us more about the ascent?
After Adam did the FA, I got a shoulder injury on another route that kept me away from Pungitopo until two months ago. Yesterday I managed to clip the chain of this route after 40+ attempts in 16 days on the route. Is my hardest ascent up to date and by far the biggest effort I did. The mental battle I had to fight made my biggest journey on a route. First of the grade for me. Pungitopo is destinated to become a classic of the grade in Arco because of his beauty and rock quality. I would like to say thank you to all the people who believed and belayed me on the route.

Where does the name Pungitopo come from?
When I repelled down from the route while bolting I got in a big bush in Italian called Pungitopo, the plant makes some red fruits that look like Christmas tree balls. Christmas was a tradition with my grandma to go to pick some branches for making nice the house. As she passed away was good having a route with that name for remembering her.

Why did you decide to open up this climb for others to do before you did it yourself?
About letting other people try the project that I bolt I feel like is quite personal. My thoughts are that if I spend my energy on bolting and cleaning a new line or crag, and of course spending my own money to buy bolts and chains, it's fair enough that I try to make the FA. Then if the project feels too hard for me and I can't see the "light", I guess it doesn't make sense to keep it closed, and I'm happy to share it with other climbers and try to solve the route together.

How many routes have you bolted and how much more potential do you see around Arco?
I have bolted about 40 routes around Arco, and the potential is still high, especially for hard routes. The thing is that the crags left to bolt are the ones with a longer approach, but a lot of time it's worth it. The climbing scene in Arco nowadays is even more active compared to 10 years ago, as there are every year new crags it keeps the place interesting for the climbing community, especially because of the increasing number of people that start to climb per year.

Gabe Lawson, who previously had 8B+ as a PB, has done the FA of The Megg 8C+ in Squamish. "I called it The Megg, because it's very similar to a classic Chris Sharma 8a here called . It climbs with a very similar opening sequence but is much taller and harder. At the time, The Egg represented the next step in difficulty for Squamish." (c) Jacob Hoffman

Could you tell us about your climbing background and the hardest climbs you have done prior to this?
I started climbing in 2008 when I was 14, and since then I've mostly climbed outside. I took several years off due to some knee injuries, and for the past 2 years, I've been back in Squamish focusing on completing as many inspiring or undone climbs as I can. In April 2021, I did the third ascent of , by Tim Clifford, via his original start. Until now, that is by far the hardest boulder I've done. I climbed a handful of 5.14 First Ascents in 2022, most notably Tim's Sloper Problem 5.14b (8c), which was originally bolted by Tim Emmett, and Young King Dave 5.14c (8c+) bolted by Scott Milton in Paradise Valley.

Could you describe The Megg and how you projected it?
The Megg was a project for more than 20 years. It was tried briefly by visiting professionals like Nalle, Drew and Keenan, along with many locals. It took me 16 sessions spread across 10 months. At first, I wasn't sure if it was possible, and I spent months trying to find a sequence that could work. I generally don't climb indoors, so I didn't make a simulator. I mostly stretched and focused on weights and mobility training, and a very specific ketogenic diet. The Megg is around 16 moves, the first 4 being the hardest. My best guess would be that it's a V14 into a V12 vert section with no separation.

Could you say something more about the grade?
It's a very difficult boulder to grade because of the subtlety of the slopers, and the dependence on body position. No one has proposed a grade for it, until now, because nobody has been able to do all the moves. Drew Ruana suggested V16 could be fair, and given the number of V15+ climbers who could not link any moves, I think that it represents a significant step up in difficulty compared to any existing boulders in Squamish.

What 's next for you?
I'll spend one more year in Squamish in order to try and finish the remaining undone boulders, The Prow Wall - a 5.14a (8b+) multipitch by Sonnie Trotter, and a couple 15a (9a+) projects that are already bolted. There is a sit start to Room Service, which could be 9A, I believe this is the only project here harder than The Megg, so far.

Yannick Flohé has had a great trip to Chironico where he did Ephyra (8C+). "One of my favourite boulders so far big moves on pinches. Hard to grade might be easier with long arms but anyway I need the points for the ranking 🤑 4 sessions in two trips,".

Later on the same day he also sent From Dirt Grows The Flowers (8C). "Couldn’t do the mantle last trip but somehow found myself on top of this block today right after sending Ephyria. Psyched to send my projects so quickly after the #onlytryneversent trip a couple of weeks ago." (c) Xaver Quintus

In the 8a's Climber of the Year list, the German was #3 based on being #5 in the Lead World Cup and #4 in the Boulder WC, although he skipped three events. His worst result, out of ten World Cups, was #7, at the Boulder World Champion in 2021. In the 8a rakning game, he was #6 in Boulder and he also sent four 8c+ routes.

What are your goals for 2023?
My Plan for 2023 is to focus on the comp season as usual but I’ll skip some world cups and prepare fo the world championship in Bern because it’s the first event to qualify for the Olympics. Later this year I hope to have some more time for outdoor projects and I’m also motivated to try some lead routes in Ceüse again.

I’m still improving in comp climbing I’ll keep competing and after that I’ll probably focus more on rock climbing and studying

Emelie Gerhardt, who last year did some ten 8A boulders, reports on Insta that she, during the first climbing day of 2023, sent The last emperor (8A+) and The Great Walk in Babylon (8A) in Val Calanca. (c) Julius Westphal

Could you tell us more about the ascents? Did you actually do them both in just one session?
We have been in this sector back in 2020 and I was climbing the 8A boulder on the right side of the block in one day. I did not try „The last emperor“ but it shares the first three intro moves. I just watched my boyfriend Julius. So yesterday I checked out the moves for the first time and send it the same day. „The great walk in Babylon “ is in another sector where we have been for the first time yesterday. I was able to climb it after checking out the moves.

Adam Ondra reports on Insta that he has flashed Jerry Moffatt’s The Ace (8B) at the Stanage. "🌦 I have just come back from an intense week in Sheffield in the UK 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 A lot of exciting stuff was filmed, and you can look forward to quite a few exciting videos! 🤜🤛" (c) Petr Chodura

This should be the first flash of The Ace, which is a sit start to THE JOKER (8A), and Ondra's 12th flash 8B or 8B+. "Freak moment! Executed just perfectly! Thanks for the beta Will and Leon for beta, and extra psyche by the legend himself Jerry and Magnus!"

Florian Wientjes, who last week did Dreamtime 8B+/C, reports on Insta that he has done From Dirt Grows The Flowers (8C) in Chironico. (c) XaverQuintus.net

Could you tell us more about the ascent?
I start trying it 4 years ago and since session one, I fell on this hard mantle. In isolation, the mantle worked pretty well but from the bottom always something went wrong Like cold fingers, no friction, small mistakes or hesitation. I spent around three sessions per season on it but this season I changed my beta for the mantle using a heel hook instead of just standing. It makes it a bit more physical but way safer. Usually, I always prefer standing before a heel hook so I am glad that I tried it and it worked out :)

During the last few years, we have seen plenty of advancement when it comes to redpointing ability globally. In just the last three years, we saw close to 150 9a+ ascents which can be compared to only ten 9a+ ascents per year, last decade.

Ten years ago, Alex Megos onsighted Estado critico (9a) but since then only a dozen 8c's have been onsighted if we exclude Adam Ondra, who has onsighted 47 routes 8c to 9a since 2013. Global female climbing has been following a similar trend. 9a redpoints have become much more frequent but 8b, or harder, onsights are very rare.

When the 8a logbook was introduced in 2000, we wanted to motivate climbers to onsight routes, and in the scorecard you score almost three grades higher for an onsight compared to a redpoint. Our feeling has always been that onsighting, albeit not always perfectly fluid and sometimes as nerve-wracking as taking a penalty spot kick, is fundamental to enjoying climbing and a critical part of the climbing experience. The benefits of onsight climbing, especially for younger climbers, have been stated here and elsewhere so often that there's no need to go back over them. At this point, it could perhaps even be argued that younger climbers are keeping onsighting alive since onsight ability still determines who wins a lead comp. Although, even among this group, it seems like there's a trend of focusing on onsight climbing in the gym and allocating significantly more time spent at the crag to redpointing.

Another factor to consider is that, in our digital world, video is killing the onsight star. With film of so many climbs at one's fingertips, onsighting is becoming more difficult to claim and relies even more heavily on one's honesty. Yet, even if we take the digital revolution into account, flash climbing hasn't filled the gap. In the 8a database, there are only two 8c+ flashes since Ondra flashed Supercrackinette (9a+) in 2018.

In order to keep the spirit of, let's call it, first try climbing alive, we're wondering if we should re-evaluate and give even more incentive to onsighting and flashing? We look forward to your thoughts.

Sebastien Bouin had a record breaking 2022, doing the FA of DNA (9c), Suprême Jumbo Love 9b+, Nordic Marathon 9b/+ and he also repeated Change 9b+. (c) Clarisse Bompard

What were your most emotional climbing moments in 2022?
For sure DNA was something really important to me. Clipping the anchor was something unbelievable. Not only for the performance. But I was able to go ahead. I was stuck for such a long time in DNA. Then, I would say the Norway trip was amazing. Doing Nordic Marathon, and Change (9b+) on the last day was something special too. And then, the US trip was the icing on the cake. Doing Suprême Jumbo Love in the last few days was unreal. It's definitely not happening often in life.

What about onsighting? What was your hardest onsight in 2022?
Haha 😆, not that much, my best onsights were some warm-up routes actually, some 8b's. I didn't try any hard onsight during 2022.

How do you train in between all your trips?
When I come back home between trips, I mix crag during the day and train in the gym during the evening (two sessions). It's around a month or two. But this year it was really short period of training between the trips.

Your FAs are by many considered very hard grades. What is your take on grade inflation?
It's hard to make everything coherent. I would say, it should be coherent first in a crag. Then in a region, then in a country. I try to keep coherence in the hard routes I am doing, taking care of different parameters: Time, Climbing style, Comparison with other routes, Feeling, Conditions and Shape

What are your 2023 plans and ambitions? Have you found any new crags to explore?
I am actually in Portugal trying to find the hardest route possible. Then will go a bit in Spain, Céüse, Norway and Italy. Big travels will come in 2024.

Javier Meng did his first 8A+' at age 27. Now 13 years later he has done 129 boulders 8A+ and harder. His sixth and latest 8B+ he did last year and he is #1 in the 40+ ranking game. In total, he has done 800 FAs in between 7A and harder.

Could you tell us about your climbing background?
I started climbing almost 25 years ago. Sport climbing at first, also some classic climbing but soon I specialized in bouldering. In all these years the motivation, the desire to go climbing, to look for new areas, to open new blocks and to continue improving has remained intact. The main change is that now I have more obligations and less time, which means that I have to make the most of the time I can train or go to the rock. Currently, I am a weekend climber. Hopefully, during the week I can go to train for a couple of days, and it's the weekend when I can go out on rock. I am lucky to keep the same desire to go climbing as the first day.

Which are the new areas you can recommend where you have put up the most FAs and where you see the biggest potential?
The last years, the place where I have spent the most time climbing and opening new boulders is the Valle del Miera, in Cantabria (a.k.a. lierganes). It is a limestone area that I have close to home and that allows me to make short-term visits. There are over a hundred blocks of 8th grade (8b+ máx.) and there are still very hard projects to climb. Currently, I am projecting Negro oscuro.

How many sessions have you put in and how hard could it be?
5-6 at the moment. I did it without the sit-start moves, and it's around 8A+. But the three moves from the sit are impossible for the moment 🤣 At least 8B, 8B+ or even 8C.

Why do you think you're in such good shape at age 40? What do you attribute it to?
I think I climb better now. Probably I don't have the same power, but I think I am more technical and climb more efficiently. I actually started to try really hard problems just recently.

How many hours a week do you train and climb and how do you train?
2 hours each day, 4 hours/per week. Only Moonboard sessions. No campus, no series, no clock. I do not do a scientific or planned training. I don't like training. The session must be like an outdoor day, warming up and then trying hard problems.