David Lama wrestles Il guerriero del futuro 8c+/9a at Covolo

On Monday David Lama made one of Italy's hardest crags tremble with his fast ascent of "Il guerriero del futuro" 8c+/9a at Covolo.

Climbing together with Patxi Usobiaga and local Jenny Lavarda, Lama's day was astounding: despite the summer heatwave he warmed up with an on-sight of "Incantesimo" 8a before sending "Il guerriero" 8c/9a second go. "Il guerriero" had been bolted by one of the crag's main activists Marco Savio and freed by none other than Dino Lagni (World Champion in Birmingham 1999), but after a crucial hold broke off 4 years ago the route had not been repeated. To finish the day off in style Lama also sent Le dita di Pietro" 8a+. On-sight, of course.

Lama's ascent is surely an important performance, both on a national and international scale, especially since the routes at the Covolo are renowned for their hard grades. On her blog Jenny Lavarda summed up the moment as follows: "Dear friends, the way in which he climbed was impressive... he seemed to make no effort at all... the speed of his moves, the coordination, power... incredible... it left us stunned."