Mina Markovic, who has won 22 World Cups out of which two in Bouldering, has done her second 9a, Halupca 1979 in Osp/Misja Pec. Starting from 2010, she was 2 - 1 - 1 - 2 - 2 - 1, in the overall World Cup. Last year, she had her worst season although finishing #4 in the European Championship. After the lockdown with canceled competitions, workshops, and psychology lectures, she has had more free time to spend outside and go climbing.

"Firsty I have (re)climbed a lot of other routes in Misja pec, getting a good base. With temperatures getting higher I was mostly more or less 'limited' to Osp's cave, but as routes are pretty long I started to miss 'action' and powerful moves. And also, I got a desire to try something harder and not just 'tick' a project in a couple of tries. In the beginning, I thought Halupca could be a nice 'training' route, to do some hard moves outside (as I was not motivated to spend days alone in a gym). Natural rock and spend days outside in fresh air was a big motivator :) Soon, I got the feeling it could be possible but I believe no one took me seriously.

It was like a new feeling. I was just so happy to be climbing outside again trying to push my limit together with my friends. I remember when I started to climb at age ten. You know all dedicated climbers are special and I immediately found friends with the same mentality eager to do challenges etc. Having spent like 15 years with a strong focus on competitions, this spring, it was like getting back to the roots and I am so much looking forward traveling to different crags this summer and challange myself on onsights.

We also talked about her experiences of the weakened immune system at the end of last year, where no specifics reason was found, but (suggested) restoring some weight and gain back heath was the best investment in the life she could do. "Maybe more about the psychological and physical aspects of climbing, competitions, and nutrition later on."

"10 - 12 days to send. Three seconds to get down. Stupid sport :)!

The semi final will be live streamed with a link here on 8a tomorrow starting at 9.00. More Info

Katie Lamb has done her second 8B in just a week, Don't get too greedy in RMNP. During the last two weeks, the 22-year-old has done two 8A+' and two 8B's and she is #12 in the monthly ranking game also including the male.

"It took me 4 sessions before I found my grip of life and destiny on the crux pinch. I was able to fly free on the crux move, and make a top. My friends were once again key to the send, a bunch of legends. They kept the angry marmot rodents away from the boulder and played My Song when I needed it most. In the end, I just needed to be less greedy :)"

Brooke Raboutou, who has qualified to Tokyo 2021, has done her fifth 8B during the last two months, Nuthin but sunshine in RMNP. Yesterday she also did The Centaur 8A+. In the monthly 8a ranking game, the 19-year-old is #1 and among the male, she is #10.

Stefano Carnati, World Youth Champion in 2013, has done his fourth 9a+, Jungle Boogie in Céüse which Adam Ondra put up in 2012. Last year, the Italian worked it for around ten days and this year it went down during a three day trip.

"25 really intense moves, on some of the sharpest crimps I’ve ever grabbed, without any rests, make up the first part of the route. The redpoint crux consists of a reachy lock off to a good two fingers pocket, which was not that hard for me to do individually, but coming from the ground it really became a struggle against finger numbness after so much crimping. Happily last Friday everything worked out all right! Reaching the jug at the end of this sequence was a moment of pure joy, but staying present on the upper easier 20 meters slab (no fall zone) without any more energies and sensation in my fingers was definitely the real mental challenge. And it lasted fifteen long minutes!" More info on his Insta

Giuliano Cameroni, who previously has done 16 boulders 8C and harder, out of which five FA, comments his latest, Power of Now 8C.

"So psyched to have done this one, for sure one of the coolest boulders I’ve ever seen! Starts with a World Cup dihedral straight into a perfect dyno to a good hold, then a few set up moves on sculpted grips lead into the crux, a huge dynamic yet technical move to the lip. The wall is around 60 degrees, so although the holds are good they are so far apart that it didn’t feel possible to stick the lip while cutting the feet. Having good sensations and enough tension on the right foot in order to stick the move became pretty mental. Getting there it’s pretty hard already and the last move needs to be executed with the right flow.

The key was to focus on the moment. So many times on dynamic moves it’s easy to start thinking. When you are free of thoughts and fear of messing up, you just focus on the now, which is an extra element that helps your way up to your climb. Being in the present moment is not only necessary in climbing but it helps life in general. It gives joy and takes away weird pressures from the egoistic mind. Meditation takes away negative ideas and helps to be in comfort with your whole body and respect nature and other people.

Advertorial: Tenaya athlete Alex Megos on his memorable mission to climb Perfecto Mundo (9b+/5.15c).

At first, this might sound like one of those boring trips, the type where someone goes somewhere, climbs something hard, and that’s it. And this trip totally could have been one of those, but this time it was not as expected. Stuck in Spain without climbing gear, and without camera gear, too. Off to a good start which would lead to one of the most memorable sport climbing trips Alex has ever had. Read the full story