Solène Amoros, a french multi-pitch specialist, has set a new PB by doing La flûte en chantier (8c+) in Verdon. (c) Theo Cartier

"I’ve been trying the route a little bit for the last two seasons, and this year I trained specifically for this. It is an incredibly beautiful line, with two (very bad) parallel tufas. One of the first lines you see when you arrive in the cave. It is composed of 3 sections: a physical 8b, a powerful 8b+ on bad holds (the crux) and an 8a+. The first 8b is composed of big moves in a 45° steep wall for about 15 m, it's not that hard but difficult enough to consume a consequent part of your energy balance. Then it’s less steep, and a good but really painful rest allows you to breathe a bit before the crux section: 15 intense movements without any possibility to shake or chalk. It is super hard to pinch and to be precise enough on the holds of this single tufa during a few meters. The feet are really bad and you need to rush forward until the moment you have to traverse to another tufa.

It’s a big traverse move and I sent the route the first time I stuck it. A 5 stars drop knee section leads you to another big rest. And then you're only left with a final 8a+, 20 m long and very stressful during the send! When I sent it, a little breeze was cheering me on, it was perfect. This year, it took me 10 days to send, divided between 3 trips. I was working and training in between and could go every two weekends only. In the end, I don’t really remember the send go but more so all the other tries and high points. Maybe because it obsessed me until the next one? I really enjoyed the process, the training and the good stress of giving everything for a route. Especially when the route is in a place as beautiful as La Ramirole. The Verdon gorges are a peaceful and quiet area that I really love, and I can’t wait to spend more time there in the next years."

What are the hardest MPs you have done the last two years?
Alibaba (8a+ - 240 m) in September
La Ramirole (8b max -150 m) in May
Hôtel Supramonte (8b max - 400 m except for the last easy pitches that were wet at the tile) last November
Lignes de vie (8a+ max - 150 m) in Grenoble last summer
Asproman (8a max - 200m) in Ailefroide 2 years ago 🙂.

What is your next plan and what about this winter?
I'm going to climb and bolt new routes in Albania for the next two weeks and then start training again to climb 9a on day 🙃

Ai Mori won all three rounds in the Boulder and Lead World Cup in Morioka. In the final, she got 98.8 points in Boulder and was runner-up behind Natalia Grossman at 99.1. Then in Lead, Mori was superior, as she had been also in the previous rounds, getting five holds and 20 points above Natalia, who was #2 in the Lead event.


“I am very happy of winning a medal in my own country,” the Japanese 19-year-old commented to IFSC “Today it was fun, even though it was pretty tough to compete in both disciplines.” (c) Lena Drapella/IFSC

1. Ai More JPN 190.9
2. Natalia Grossman USA 171.2
3. Cheahyun Seo KOR 131.8
4. Brooke Raboutou USA 126
5. Miho Nonaka JPN 104.0
Complete results

Taylor McNeill has done in Neverland, after projecting it for 8 days. "Perfect line... Best of the best." James Webb put it up in 2014 as an 8B+ and commenting, "Absolutely one of the best lines I've done. So glad to make the FA. Maybe the low now? Hope it's possible!" Then in 2019 a video was presented calling it 8C.

Do you know why it was 8B+ originally?
If I remember correctly, Jimmy had never done an established 8C at that time and didn’t feel comfortable calling it harder. The boulder is in the middle of nowhere, about an hour of driving on dirt roads. Also is quite hard. Daniel came really close in the spring, I bet it will see another ascent soon.

Elnaz Rekabi has posted on her Insta.

"I am endlessly grateful for the support of you, all the people of Iran, the most decent people of the planet, athletes and non athletes, and all your supports in international community: What I have gained till today was regarding the caring of you beautiful souls; and the future would not be a road without obstacles if you are not coming along.

I sincerely thank all those who came to the airport for welcoming me, I love you. With respect Me; the people, Iran"

When she competed without a hijab in the Asian Championship, she had 80 000 followers on her Insta. Now she has 442 000 and out of them, until now, 195 000 have liked her message.

Gonzalo Larrocha, who in the last month has done three 8c+ and one 9a, has done Patanics (9a+) in Rodellar. All in all, the 38-year-old is peaking, and only in 2022, he has done 120+ routes 8a and harder.

How many sessions did you project it?
This autumn seven days but I tried it many other sessions in other seasons.

I don't know what to say about this route. The process was perfect during this season. Every try I fell higher, only in the last two days had some regression tries. The problem is more or less the same as in No pain no gain. The main difference is that a crimp broke off which made the boulder section harder.

1. Tomoa Narasaki JPN 84.3 + 72.1 = 156.4
2. Yoshiyuki Ogata JPN 54.4 + 84.0 = 138.4
3. Kokoro Fujii JPN 68.6 + 64= 132.6
Complete results

Tomoa Narasaki won the very first Boulder and Lead World Cup, getting 18 points more than Yoshiyuki Ogata also from Japan. Placing third was Kokoro Fujii and in total the Japanese team had five at the Top-7. All in all, the route setting and new calculation played out well for Paul Jenft winning the Boulder round with 84.7 points and Ogata winning Lead with 84.0 points.

“It’s been definitely a tough round, but I’m glad I have won the first-ever World Cup medal in this format,” said Narasaki to IFSC. “To be honest, this morning I didn’t really feel like having two rounds on the same day, but I kept my focus and gave my best.” (c) Lena Drapella

In practice, this means that Ogata was four moves from the top and that Jenft needed seven attempts to make 3 Tops and 4 High Zones. It should be noted that a new point system was tested and the only difference with the old system, used in the Euro Championship, would have been that Yannick Flohé would have taken Jeft's #4 position.

Simone Tentori has done the second ascent of Clement Lechaptois' Solitary daze (8C) in Fionnay, which is a direct exit to Permanent Midnight (8A+). (c) Sierra Fabri

"As soon as I climbedFoundations Edge (8C) (last month) I started trying Solitary Daze because it's a very attractive line and it seemed my style. This problem is both powerful and technical, you need to squeeze hard with your upper body and legs and at the same time you need to place really difficult heel hooks.

I tried for 5/6 days and I was really close, falling a few times at the last hard move due to the slipping heel. Finished the trip empty-handed and when I got home I started some work and uni stuff. I felt tired and weak during those weeks at home but as soon as I got some free time I decided to come back to try anyway. Friday night I took the 5 hours to drive to Fionnay and Saturday I climbed the boulder first try after the warm-up."

Iziar Martinez has done Nuria (8c) and Taladrina (8b+) in Cuenca. (c) Bárbara García García Inés

In 2020, she climbed four 8c's, and since then she has focused more on competitions. This year, the 17-year-old placed on the podium in both Lead and Boulder in the European Youth Championships.

Karoline Sinnhuber has done The Antwoord (8A+) in Zillertal. "I actually didn‘t plan to try this boulder, because the start move and start position are really awkward. Anyway, somehow I landed there and checked out the moves. It took me a while to figure out the first move with the weird heel and almost in a lying position - but it worked out 😎" (c) Fabian Leu

Great to see you back sending hard, have you had an injury layoff?
I‘m also happy that I‘m back in business after a partly ruptured pulley in June and an inflammation in July/August. It definitely sucked, not being able to crimp hard 😁 there is still a bit of inflammation in my finger, but I can crimp - and that‘s all that counts 😄