The news

The first stage of the ISMF Ski Mountaineering World Cup 2017 took place at Font Blanca in Andorra last weekend. Saturday’s Individual race was won by France’s Laetitia Roux and Germany’s Anton Palzer, while Sunday’s Vertical race was won by Sweden’s Emelie Forsberg and Switzerland’s Marti Werner.

The video of Stefano Ghisolfi and his most recent attempt at one of the hardest sport climbs in the world, First Round First Minute, Chris Sharma’s 9b at Margalef, Spain.

The video by Neil Hart of James Pearson climbing The Quarryman in the Llanberis slate quarries in North Wales.

Live streaming from Saas Fee in Switzerland of the Ice Climbing World Cup 2017. The Speed Finals stream at 19:30 this evening, the Lead Semis and Finals throughout Saturday.

In December 2016 Poland’s Dariusz Sokołowski repeated A Line Above The Sky, one of the most difficult drytooling climbs in the world, freed at Tomorrow's World in the Dolomites by Britain’s Tom Ballard in 2016.

Bouldering video: Isabelle Faus climbing The Wheel of Chaos 8B+ at Rocky Mountain National Park, USA.

Winter mountaineering: on 31/12/2016 at the Tre Cime di Lavaredo in the Dolomites the alpinists Simon Gietl and Vittorio Messini climbed in a singole day Via Comici-Dimai on Cima Grande (in 1:45), the Cassin route up Cima Ovest (2:45) and the Innerkofler route up Cima Piccola (1:15).

On 04/01/2017 Luca Vallata and Santiago Padrós made what is likely to be the first ascent of La Pissa (WI6, M9?, 105m), the obvious icefall at Termine di Cadore, Dolomites.

The video of the climbing trip to Ethiopia by Luca Schiera, Matteo Colico, Andrea Migliano and Matteo De Zaiacomo.

Sport climbing: at Margalef in Spain Stefano Ghisolfi has repeated 'First Ley' 9a+, while at Varazze in Italy Pietro Biagini has climbed 'Alphacentauri sit', his first 8B boulder problem.

Last weekend the second stage of the Ice Climbing World Cup 2017 took place in Beijing, China; Russians Nikolai Kuzovlev and Maria Tolokonina won the Lead event, wile the Speed event was won by their teammates Radomir Proshchenko and Ekaterina Koshcheeva.

The video of America’s Kyle Maynard who, despite his congenital amputation, climbed to the summit of Kilimanjaro and Aconcagua.

Philipp Angelo, Fabrizio della Rossa and Thomas Gianola report about their first ascent of All-in (AI 6-, M7, R), a difficult new ice and mixed climb up the North Face of Sas Pegorer, Gran Vernel (Marmolada, Dolomites).

The short film of Luka Lindič e Ines Papert and their first ascent of 'Lost in China' (ED, WI 5+, M6, 1200m) up the SE Face of Kyzyl Asker (5842m), Kyrgyzstan.

In December 2016 Matej Arh and Klemen Gerbec made the first winter ascents of two summer routes up the North Face of Mt Škrlatica in Slovenia. In their winter version these routes offer outstanding and challenging winter climbing in one of the most beautiful and remote corners of the Julian...

Mountaineering in the Mont Blanc massif: on the North face of Aiguille des Pélerins (3318m) Jeff Mercier, together with Lucien Boucansaud, Xavier Cailhol and Bastien Lardat, has climbed 'Les Flammes de l’enfer’, a new variation to the famous ice and mixed climb Beyond Good and Evil.