Linda Sjödin has made some kind of record in grade progress going from 8A to do New Base Line 8B+ in Magic Wood. Remarkably to say the least as there are less than a dozen female that have reached that grade. Please give us your climbing background? I first started climbing in 2011 at age 19 but quite irregularly. In 2015 I started climbing more consistently and trained to perform better on the wall. How important is climbing in your life now? For a long time, I’ve identified myself primarily as a medicine student who likes climbing but the last couple of years climbing has become a bigger part of my life and who I am. Last year I took a break from med. school to focus on climbing, so there’s been a lot of climbing lately. How many sessions did NBL take and how much specific training? I didn’t count the sessions but probably around 15. Looking back, it would have been wiser to skip some of them and just climb something else. Starting a project at the beginning of the summer wasn’t the smartest decision, I’ve had too many bad sessions where it was just too warm, sunny or humid to climb at that level. I tried sending at 2 AM to get cooler temps but I’m really not a night person so that didn’t work out very well. I trained a lot but nothing specifically for New Base Line. What about comps next year and how do you train? I haven’t decided if I want to do comps or not next year. I mainly just climb and try to focus on improving my technique. What is your next plan? I’ll be home for a couple of months and then hopefully off to Brione and Albarracin and home again in January to get back to med school, but nothing is set in stone yet. (c) Åke Rosén

David Firnenburg, who has done two 9a+', has done his 13th 9a, Jungfrumarathon in Grimmelwand. "First 9a after my shoulder injury. Felt already possible to send on the first day but needed another two days because of bad beta for me at the crux. Pump of my life clipping the anchor :-D Thank you Andrea for your support! Such a nice place up here." More info on Insta. In 2016, David got the bronze in the Combined World Championship and he was #4 in a Boulder World Cup and he was one of the first who focused on making it to the Olympics.

Organic Silicum is a new GEL from Climb Skin that includes extracts and oils of the highest quality with anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties in a unique and innovative formula. These ingredients help during all phases of treatment in the recovery of muscle, tendon and joint injuries. Especially indicated for sports injuries, arthropathies, contusions, as well as to speed up and optimize tissue recovery after intense sessions of climbing, training or competition. What is it different from other products? Most of the products on the market focus solely on treating the consequences of an injury: pain relief and inflammation but although this is necessary and Organic Silicium gel does it very effectively, but there is a more important job to do , to help recover damaged tissues. A top quality Organic Silicium and in the way that it has been incorporated to the formula are the KEY in this process.

Giuliano Cameroni has made the FA of a Fred Nicole ~10m bolted route in Rocklands naming it Legacy. Gradewise, it is an 8B+ with an 8b finish making it the first 9a in Africa. Fred had been projecting it every year since 2014. In last November he had a hip replacement so this year he was in better shape. "When Giuliano asked me if I mind him trying the route I sincerely didn’t know what to answer. In my generation, it’s not usual to try somebody’s project till the person does it or gives it free. In the same time, I didn’t feel like telling somebody I know since he was born, and that I respect for his performances, not to try it. I let the decision to him and wished him sincerely luck if he would go for it!", reported Fred on Insta Cameroni has made some comments on Insta saying he is very impressed of Nicole's ascents as his beta is harder being shorter. "Fred is a very humble person and before I climbed the route he didn’t tell me how close he was to send it. In my generation we tend not to close projects, rocks are free and everyone is able to enjoy them. In my opinion, this is the best way to progress our sport, by working as a team instead of competing against each other."

To speed up and increase the excitement in several disciplines in Track & Field, like in long jump, only the Top-6 out of twelve will be allowed to do four jumps. Then they will reduce to five athletes doing five jumps and just four will do the final jump. Also in Adidas Rockstars they reduce the number of athletes in order to increase the excitement. 8a has previoulsy suggested similar ideas for Bouldering in the World Cup. 1. Let 8 athletes advance to the final 2. Reduce to Top-6 after the first two boulders 3. Reduce to Top-4 after three boulders 4. Make a short break 5. Run a super final with the athletes in reversed order However, everyone who still has a chance to win, if the route setters have made a mistake separating the participants, are allowed to compete on the next boulder. Furthermore, the 8a suggestion did also include that the two first boulders are climbed at the same time. Before the fourth and last boulder, there is a short break and then the Top-4 climbs in reversed order. Such a final will take around 70 minutes including a 5-minute break and will be packed with action with a more exciting finish. This can be compared with 80-90 min for the current format which normally has plenty of sequences with less action and excitement.

In the Adidas Rockstars super final, where Janja Garnbret and Futaba Ito climbed on two identical boulders, Ito fell midways but jumped up directly. Garnbret was caught in the middle and could not find the sequence and soon the 17 year old Japanese got to her height and just kept going without hesitating. As Ito hit the buzzer, Garnbret was still hanging in the same position. Third was Ai Mori, only 15 years old. Among the male, nor Yoshiyuki Ogata or Florian Klingler could not finish the superfinal boulder during the four minutes although both come very close. Then they made the finish a little bit easier but Ogata opted for his original sequence and topped. Jongwon Chon got the bronze. The winners got a check of Euro 5 000 both. Ogata said directly after his victory, "This comp is the most enjoyable competition in the world." (c) Vladek Zumr