The news

At the start of July the belays of three classic Dolomites climbs were re-equipped during a mountain rescue training session. The routes in question are Frisch Corradini and Franceschini-Esposito on Pala del Rifugio and Simon-Wiessner-Kess on nearby Cima del Coro in the Pale di San Martino mountain group.

The Red Bull X-Alps, the most audacious and extreme competition in the world, came to an end today at 11.24. Christian Mauer won with a 48 hour advantage over closest rival Alex Hofer (SUI1), while Honza Rekmanek (USA) placed third.

Interview with 26 year old Swiss athlete Christian Maurer, the first to cross the Red Bull X-Alps 2009 finishing line in Monaco yesterday. Maurer spent 11 magnificent and spectacular days in the incredible paragliding and running race, one of the toughest and most extreme outdoor races in the world which...

Simone Pedeferri, Matteo Della Bordella, Lorenzo "Pala" Lanfranchi and Richard Felderer have just returned from a successful expedition to the relatively unexplored eastern Greenland where there carried out 5 first ascents. Simone Pedeferri talks about the expedition.

On 23/07/2009 Geremia Vergoni and Tiziano Buccella carried out the first ascent of their Opus Pocus, on the remote south face of Piz Seràuta on the Marmolada, Dolomites.

At 11:24 Christian ‘Chrigel’ Maurer (SUI3) landed in Monaco to become the 2009 Red Bull X-Alps Champion.

Swiss mountaineer Jean Troillet and the Frenchmen Martial Dumas and Jean-Yves Fredriksen have made the first ascent of "Sébastien Gay" (600m ABO), a new difficult route up the North Face of the Matterhorn.

Austrian Extreme Athlete Disqualified – Christian Maurer already at the Mont Blanc

On 26/07/2009 Veikka Gustafson reached the summit of Gasherbrum I together with Japanese climber Kazuya Hiraide and four Bulgarians. For the mountaineer from Finland this seals his bid to climb all fourteen 8000m peaks without supplementary oxygen.

Carter and Geijsen out while Maurer forges ahead

Rock climbing on Gogarth in Wales, one of the best sea cliffs in Britain.

A new via ferrata called "Sci Club 18" has been created on Monte Faloria in Cortina, Dolomites.

Paolo Spreafico, climbing with Adriano Carnati, made a rare on-sight repeat of Batman in Wenden (Switzerland).

Nutella for breakfast, Marmolada for lunch, predicted Christian Maurer (SUI3) earlier today...

The routes and news from Rio Gere, the crag close to Cortina in the Dolomites ideal to escape the summer heat.

On 18 July 2009 the 31 year old Italian mountaineer Cristina Castagna died as a result of a fall into a crevasse at 7000m during her descent from Broad Peak (Karakorum, Pakistan). Confirmation came from her climbing partner Giampaolo Casarotto.