Belén Villalón, with four 8b+’ under his belt, has completed La gioconda (8c) in Rodellar. ” It came together in a very unexpected way. It was my first time doing the move from the third bolt, and I had only managed the upper section after taking a fall before. Everything just clicked: I got through the lower part as if it were nothing, even though I did the "easy" section feeling really nervous, and then I sent the crux with a foot cut included. It feels so good to send it with those sensations—my heart is full! 😍 Onward!!” (c) Ori Breluru

Can you tell us more about sending your first 8c?
I started trying it a month ago and it fits a lot with my climbing style. It’s on a steep roof and requires a lot of knee technique and body tension. My best friend Marta Palou encouraged me to try it and helped me with all sorts of methods because figuring out these routes is a real puzzle. The route consists of a hard move (for me) on the third bolt, followed by an easier section of climbing until you reach a great knee rest halfway up. From there comes the crux of the route, which is about 15 moves of power endurance of similar intensity until you reach the anchor.

I want to thank everyone who encouraged me that day, especially Ori and Marta for supporting me throughout this whole process.

What is your climbing background?
I’m from Chile, I started climbing there in 2009, and I’ve been living and climbing in Spain since 2018. I’ve been working in Rodellar since 2019, and this is where I spend most of my time climbing. I’m so happy to have climbed my first 8c at this crag that I love so much and that has such great routes everywhere.

What is next?
Now I’d like to try Da Vinci Extension (8c) at El Museo and maybe go to Piscineta, where I have so much to do. There’s still plenty of time left in Rodellar!

Michaela Kiersch has during a 27 degrees afternoon in Smugglers' Notch flashed Mind Stream (8A+) and sent The Impossible Sit (8A) as well as May it Be SDS (8A).

How did you prepare for the flash?
Mindstream is basically 3 moves so it was not hard to know the beta and give a good flash attempt.

Are you going back to live in Innsbruck?
Let’s see. Back in the US for July and August!

Are you full time professional climber?
Full time rock climber! I quit my job in October before moving to Europe. I’m not back long enough to get another.

Christopher Cosser, who was 16th in the Tokyo Olympics, has done Show Your Teeth (9a) in Wolf Point. The 25-yesr-old South African has previously sent two 9a’s and one 9a+.

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
It’s been a great couple weekends climbing up at Wolf Point! One of the first routes I did was a line called Sheep Eye (8c), notoriously spicy, and then accidentally found myself on the white panel of Show Your Teeth, only to discover it is one of the best lines at the Point. Psyched to get it done in two days of effort. Major props to Bj Tilden for the vision up here.

What are your summer plans?
I have my eyes set on a big project (Wind Up Bird (9b)) for the fall season, so it’s a training summer for me.

Enrique Beltrán Blasco has completed El Picacho (9a+) in Rodellar. To avoid the heat wave, the Spaniard did wake up 3:30 and arrived to the crag one hour later with his friends Lizer and Samuel. Jonathan Flor did the FA in 2021 and suggested 9b. ”I think the route didn’t have enough hard boulders to be a solid 9b so I suggest 9a+.”

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
This is the last project from Dani Andrada in Ali baba cave. It’s a hard boulder traverse (in my opinion because it has 22 moves) around 8c route and you go directly to Ali Hulk Extension Total (9a+).

What is your next plan?
My main goal this season is to be in shape for Perfecto Mundo (9b+) and I think this route is a good approach.

Jorge Diaz-Rullo, who climbed Café Colombia (9c) earlier this spring, has spent nearly a month on a bouldering trip in the high mountains of Ticino. During the trip, the Spaniard ticked more than 20 problems graded 8A and harder, including Adularia (8C), and even flashed Voz suave del mar (8B).

”After getting up at 5 am to try Hazel Grace and realising I couldn’t hold onto the holds because of the heat, I ended up on this wall. Somehow, I channelled that frustration, which helped me tackle this attempt with determination and without any pressure. It was more about endurance than strength, but still stoked to have achieved what might be my toughest flash ever.”

What made you go for this boulder trip and did it meet your expectations?
After finally finishing my long-term project, Café Colombia, I went through a lot of different emotions. In a way, I felt a bit lost, like I had no clear direction or goal for the first time in a long while. I know it’s just a phase and that I’ll soon be fully motivated again, but in the meantime I wanted to take a step back from my usual routine, travel, discover new places, and spend time climbing with friends. It felt like the perfect excuse to get back into bouldering. I didn’t come here with any expectations or specific goals. I just wanted to enjoy climbing whatever inspired me. Although, for me, taking it easy still means climbing as much as possible! I wasn’t in my best shape, and the conditions weren’t always ideal, but bouldering definitely gave me a reality check, it’s so hard!

More importantly, I’ve really enjoyed being here. The boulders are incredible, and I’ve met so many amazing climbers over the past few days. Being surrounded by such strong and passionate people has been really inspiring and has motivated me even more.

What was the most memorable climbs and what made it special?
I’ve climbed quite a lot during this trip, around twenty problems from 8A up to 8C, including a few flash up to an 8B. But honestly, the most memorable moments weren’t any particular sends. They were the sessions where I felt I learned something new. That’s what makes this trip special for me. Being here is about the experience, and I know I still have a lot to learn when it comes to bouldering. Those moments of progress are what I’ll remember the most.

What are your next summer plans?
In a few days I’ll be back to training, this time with clear goals for the autumn season. I’m excited to start a new chapter in my climbing career and focus on the projects ahead.

Gianluca Vighetti, who last year sent two 9a+’ at age 16, has done The famous gem (9a) in La Saume. Last year the Italian won the Euro youth cup overall. (c) Nicolò Vece

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
I wanted to spend a weekend climbing on rock after the end of the Italian competitions, but I still wanted to try a "comp-style" route, or at least something that could help me train a lot. The Famous Gem was perfect for my goal: a bouldery, crimpy, and overhanging line without many kneebars. On the first day, I never managed to get past the first crux, which is shared with the 8c section, and I started doubting myself and my fitness. The next day, I was having the exact same issue, but once I climbed past the crux, everything went perfectly, and I sent this beautiful line.

What are your summer plans?
My summer plan is to focus on the international competions, the European youth cups, European senior cups and the World youth championship in Arco. I'm also really excited for the rock season in Autumn! I have some really cool lines in my mind.

How come you have not done any IFSC comps in 2026?
Unfortunately I had a shoulder injury that kept me off the wall for some time at the beginning of the season and I wasn't able to compete in the first wc selection and in the other one I wasn't fully recovered. But it isn't a problem, next year I'm going to give my best for sure.

Sorato Anraku, who claimed his first overall Boulder World Cup title in 2023 at just 16 years old, continues to dominate the discipline with a fourth consecutive overall title in 2026. The 19-year-old Japanese climber, who capped off the 2025 season with gold at the World Championships, has won all five Boulder World Cups in 2026, often by commanding margins that have underlined his supremacy on the circuit. Since 2025, all six events have been counted toward the overall standings.

Laura Rogora, who is on a break from the competition scene, has sent Moon landing (9a) in Passo della Presolana. The five star line was bolted by Luca Bana, who did the third ascent, and FA’ed by Stefano Carnati. The 25-year-old has sent 16 routes 9a and beyond during the last year and she is number one in the ranking game ahead of Jorge Diaz-Rullo. (c) Carolina Meloni

Can you tell us more about the weekend?
Last weekend I went to Passo della Presolana to try Moonlanding. On Saturday I worked the moves, and after the first two burns the final crux felt pretty hard, so I decided to do the 8c+ exit instead, especially because it had started raining and the 9a exit was wet.

On my third go my foot slipped on a wet hold and then I sent it on the fourth try. I tried the exit again and found some better beta, but I didn’t have high hopes for the next day.

The following day, however, on my second go the wind had picked up a bit and I realized I had a chance. I didn’t make any mistakes, and after a good fight on the final boulder I clipped the chain.

Arthur Poindefert jumps three grades and repeats Supercrackinette (9a+) in Saint Léger after more than 100 tries. During the two years of projecting, the alpine guide had his shoulder dislocated and underwent compartment syndrome surgery. (c) Timothée Nietschke

Can you tell us more about the ascent and what went into completing it?
This project was something I had in mind during every training session for two years. I had other smaller climbing projects on the side, but this one really taught me how to detach myself from the result while still putting everything into training. In the end, you can climb there in autumn, winter and spring, so quite often. But I also had long periods where I couldn’t go because of injuries that stopped me from climbing.

Can you tell us more about the day of the send?
To tell you about that day, you first need to know that I was supposed to try the route at the end of winter, but with my shoulder injury, my delayed training, and everything else, my shape only came back at the end of May. I was a bit alone in the process, because not many people were at the cliff in early June because of the heat. Every week, from Grenoble, I was doing day trips to put in 2 to 4 tries in the route around 8 p.m., before driving all the way back the same evening.

In the end, I kept feeling better and better in the route, but the guiding season had definitely started! After a first Mont Blanc with two clients, I had to drive from Chamonix for one last day before being completely taken by work for the rest of June. Two good friends were on holiday, and one of them was preparing for the 90 km du Mont-Blanc and had to run. So we planned to meet there: he would run during the day and come belay me in the evening. I drove from Annecy that same day, with my car’s air conditioning broken. Let’s just say I didn’t arrive at the cliff feeling very fresh, and I wasn’t particularly motivated that time… I felt like I was maybe starting to fall into pure stubbornness. So I delayed my arrival at the cliff, spent time with my friends, played some ping-pong, and the motivation came back.

Around 8 p.m., I arrived at the cliff, warmed up in 15 minutes on the ground and on the hangboard there. Then I went up to brush the holds, and by 9 p.m., the day was over, with the route done on the first try. It felt pretty unreal. My climbing was perfect, no detail had escaped me, and the wind probably saved me. For once, I had the energy I needed for the last move, and even though the rock was still warm from the day, the strong wind made it just good enough. Funny little anecdote: the two friends are not really climbers, and 5 minutes before sending the route, I had to explain to Thibaut how a Grigri works! I had been talking to them about the route for two years, and it was their first time at the cliff. They must have thought climbing wasn’t actually that hard after all!

What about the compartments syndrome problem and surgery?
My arms always used to ache when I was training for endurance climbing, but I thought that was the same for everyone. Over time, I realised last year that this wasn’t normal: I was finding it increasingly difficult and my performance was dropping significantly. I couldn’t even climb my warm-up routes without feeling severe pain in my arms, like tendonitis. I eventually discovered that I also had visible muscle hernias in my arms. Once we’d identified the problem, things moved quickly. I had an operation and within two or three weeks I was climbing again! To put it simply, the tissue surrounding my muscle isn’t elastic, and my muscle kept growing without having enough space to do so.