The third stage of the Speed WC will take place Friday in Wujiang. The fourth event, out of six, in the Bouldering WC 2019 starts on Saturday with semis and finals live-streamed on Saturday. Interesting is that Miho Nonaka does her first event in 2019 after being injured and that Adam Ondra is back from being sick but again he will not participate in Speed. Shauna Coxsey is missing again at the same time she reports on Insta that she trains hard back home. Friday 03th May: GMT + 8 19.00-20.00 Men & Women Speed Finals [LIVE] Sunday 04th May 09.30-11.45 Men & Women Bouldering Semi-finals [LIVE] 17.00-18.30 Women Bouldering Final [LIVE] 18.30-20.00 Men Bouldering Final [LIVE]

Daniel Jung, who previously has done three 9a+', has just published some news about his FA of Karamba Karacho 9a Phantasialand on his Insta. It is a link up of an originally 9a and 8c which he both downgraded after the full line was done. (c) Hannes Kutza "Karamba Karacho is a limestone roof on a small local rock. Nearly 50 powerfull moves on pinches crimps and pockets. It was a hard project physically and mentally challenging. I needed a lot of patience, because most of the time the rock was wet. It took me 3 years to finish the first part „Karamba“ in 2011. I would need at least 6 crashpads, they had to be moved 3 times during my rest position. Sometime I only could train on a few moves because most of the holds were wet. I didn't want to break hold in the wet conditions. Some holds were ok to climb on wet conditions. A few weeks after I send „Karamba“ I was lucky to send „Karacho“ as well. „Karacho“ starts where „Karamba“ ends. To send the whole line was a big project for me since then. Sadly the rock was unclimbable wet most times I visited the crack during the last years. After the very dry summer the project became very interesting again last year. The rock was in perfect conditions. That made a big difference. During my sends 2011 the crux holds were humid all the time. With dry holds it felt much easier, so I was back into „Karamba“ very quick. But I had problems on the second part „Karacho“. I wasn't able to reclimb it, it felt too hard. After lots of checking out I found a tricky new beta, with a hook I was able to do a long move and skipped the two worst crux holds. That was key so I finally could send „Karamba Karacho“. The beautiful line that I had in my mind since such a long time. For me it's important to mention that I didn't use a hammer or any tools to „clean/create“ the line. I only cleaned it with a plastic brush. I didn't used any sika. The rock was very sharp, but it's a part of the game, I payed it with a bit of pain and blood. It was worth it: I did a real free climb. It is very sad that I have to mention this, usually I should be the standard. But sadly lots of modern routes, even some of the hardest have artificial holds (drilled pockets, molded sika...). Please remember what free climbing is about: climbing without any artificial help."

The #1 reason why your rope get twisted is when you are lowered down from an anchor with two fixed points on the same height. The longer the horizontal distance, the worse. When bolting an anchor with only rings, the bolts should not be placed on the same height. The idea for the article has come from a recent UKC article showing the opposite! If you want to tope rope in an anchor with the rings on the same height, you could place just one carabiner in one ring and a long quick draw in the other ring. There is no trick to avoid twisting the rope once you have cleaned the anchor if you not bring a tube and rappel down yourself. Further more, take your time to uncoil your rope coming from the factory a couple times as most of them come heavily twisted causing some 10 min frustration just when you want to start climbing.

Based on 1 300+ unique votes, Best Crash Pad? We can see that Organic continues to strengthen their #1 position. In brackets the 2016 result. 29 % Organic (22 % in 2016) 16 % Ocun (15) 11 % Black Diamond (13) 09 % Moon (10) 08 % Other (8) 04 % Petzl (5), Snap (5), Edelrid (5) 03 % MadRock (4), Asana (-), Mammut (3), Metolius (3) 02 % Pad (6)

Caroline Sinno, who previously has done three 8B traverses in Font, has done the FA of L'Insoutenable légèreté de l'autre, which was 8B before break in 2009. Then Nalle Hukkataival repeated it in 2011. "First ascent after the key undercling broke. 8B+ now?". Later one more important break before Caroline did a new FA after two months projecting it, including finding beta and giving it some 20 good tries. (c) Max Loison - (Check out the power in that three finger open crimp in a roof standing on very small foot holds!) "I cannot really tell how much harder it is because I didn’t try it back then but I guess it’s a lot harder and trickier because instead of changing hand on the lip of the arete you have to aim at a crack and change hands. It is weird as you cannot hold with all of your fingers because there is not enough space." It should be noted that Charles Albert has opened a more straight finish giving it 8B+, finishing in a harder mantle but less moves. "I can’t say my version is now 8B+ but it’s a solid 8B. I think it is harder than New Base Line, the only 8B+ I have experience off but Font standards are different."

Piotr Schab, who just the last year has done four 9a+', has done his first 9b Fight or Flight in Oliana. In the 8a ranking game, the Pole has been runner up after Adam Ondra for more than a year. (c) Wojtek Kozakiewicz "It means a lot. 9b was a dream and Fight or Flight was a real challenge. I’ve never climbed such an intense route, usually my hardest climbs were long and endurance - styled. I had to adapt to a faster style of climbing and take more risks than ever, but it was a great game. It took me 22 days in total, out of which 15 in 2018. Still have two more weeks in here so I hope to use them well and choose some projects for the upcoming trips."

Janja Garnbret, the Boulder WCH in 2018, got her fifth straight Boulder WC victory in Chongqing by winning all three rounds. Among the male, Manuel Cornu, #3 in the WCH in 2016, got his first WC win but it was a very close call as he won over Tomoa Narasaki with just one attempt to the zone. Further more, Tomoa made a false start on boulder #3. Add to that, Manuel was the last guy to qualify to the semifinal Top-20 by one attempt to the top. Adam Ondra still leads the WC even if he could not compete in China due to being sick. 1. Janja Garnbret SLO 44 - Manuel Cornu FRA 34 2. Akiyo Noguchi JPN 44 - Tomoa Narasaki JPN 34 3. Jessica Pilz AUT 34 - Anze Peharc SLO 34 Complete results

Giuliano Cameroni did the FA of REM and Poision the Well in February. In the 8a ranking game, the 21 year old is #3. Now he is in Colorado for seven weeks, then Brazil and Rocklands. "I wanna climb as much as possible and take advantage of the chance I have to travel around the world. I will do my best to climb all the hard problems that I will try. Sykd!

Diego Fourbet has done the FA of a 9a extension to La Proue Debridee 8c+ in Roche de Rame which he did last year. Diego started climbing being three years old and since age six, he has been training with a club. More info on his Insta. The 16 year old is the son of the famous French climbing couple, Nathalie (ex-Richer) and Olivier Fourbet. "Antony Lamiche bolted the project six years ago. I spend six session on the route but the first part of the route is the same that a route I did last year. I have always traveled in Europe with my parents where I climb and boulder in different areas. Since I am 14 I study in a special class to climb more (CIE DE BRIANCONS).