On the north face of the Aguja Standhardt in Patagonia the Italian alpinists Matteo Bernasconi, Matteo Della Bordella and Matteo Pasquetto have established Il dado è tratto. The new route provides 'spectacular' climbing. Della Bordella reports directly from El Chalten.
Last summer an all-star team of climbers comprised of Nina Caprez, Sean Villanueva and Roger Schäli established a difficult new rock climb up the North Face of the Eiger in Switzerland.
Details of the first one-day ascent of La Vida es Silbar up the North Face of the Eiger in Switzerland, carried out on 23 July by Roger Schaeli and Sean Villanueva O’Driscoll.
The video of the first free ascent of the South African route on the east face of the Central Tower of Paine, Patagonia, carried out in 2009 by Nicolas Favresse, Sean Villanueva and Ben Ditto.
Swiss climbers Nina Caprez and Aymeric Clouet have repeated 'La Vida es Silbar' up the North Face of the Eiger.
Swiss climber Nina Caprez has made a fast repeat of Voie Petit, up Grand Capucin (3838m), Mont Blanc. Established in 1997 by Arnaud Petit, Stephanie Bodet, Pascal Gaudin and Jean-Paul Petit, this 450m 8b multi-pitch was freed by Alexander Huber in 2005.
24-year-old Italian climber Giacomo Meliffi reports about his ascent of Der Ungeheuer sei Mutter, a difficult and particular trad climb in the Frankenjura, Germany, made famous by Sean Villanueva.
At Cadarese in Val d'Ossola, Italy, Caterina Bassi has repeated Turkey crack, the difficult offwidth trad crack climb first ascended by Sean Villanueva in 2010
Austria's Katharina Saurwein and Jorg Verhoeven from the Netherlands have both repeated Tainted Love, the 5.13d crack climb located on The Chief above Squamish, Canada freed by Hazel Findlay in 2017.
Complete report and photographs of the Piolets d’Or 2018, the prestigious annual mountaineering award celebrated from 20 - 23 September at Ladek Zdrój in Poland.
A French FFME expedition to Madagascar led by Arnaud Petit and Jonathan Crison has established Soavadia, a 600m new rock climb up Tsaranoro Atsimo.
The video of Belgian rock climber Sean Villanueva repeating 'Der Ungeheuer sei Mutter', a difficult and somewhat particular trad climb at the Vogelherdgrotte crag in the Frankenjura, Germany.
On July 14, 2018 Selva di Val Gardena will host the fifth edition of the Karl Unterkircher Award in memory of the South Tyrolean alpinist who died ten years ago on Nanga Parbat. The alpinists nominated for the 2018 award are Simone Moro, Ali Sadpara and Alex Txikon for the first winter ascent of Nanga Parbat, Ines Papert and Luka Lindič for their new route up Kyzyl Asker in Kyrgyzstan (China), and Simon Gietl and Marcel Schenk for the new mixed climb up Pizzo Badile in Switzerland. Special guest: Kurt Diemberger
Siebe Vanhee reports about El Matédor a new climb first ascended with Sean Villanueva O’Driscoll up the East Face of Aguja Desconocida in Patagonia.
In Yosemite, USA, Belgian climber Nicolas Favresse climbing together with Alix Morris and Drew Smith has made the first free ascent of Eye of Sauron, a spectacular and difficult new 400 m trad climb in the Ribbon Falls area.
Urban climbing in Belgium: Sébastien Berthe, Florian Delcoigne, Pierre Mertens, Pablo Recourt and Loic Debry attempt 'The Ticket Crack' at Groenendael railway station close to Brussels.
The video MAD in Madagascar, documenting Sean Villanueva & Siebe Vanhee making the first ascent of Fire in the Bell up Tsaranoro Atsimo in Madagascar.
Interview with Nicolas Favresse after the first free ascent, carried out with fellow-Belgians Sean Villanueva O'Driscoll and Siebe Vanhee, of the big wall rock climb El Regalo de Mwono (1200m, 8a) located on the East Face of the Central Tower of Paine, Patagonia.
After spending 19 days climbing the East Face of Central Tower of Paine in Patagonia, Nicolas Favresse, Sean Villanueva O'Driscoll and Siebe Vanhee completed the first free ascent of 'El Regalo de Mwono'. This 1200m big wall rock climb was established between 1991/1992 by Paul Pritchard, Simon Yates, Sean Smith and Noel Craine with difficulties up to 5b, VI, 5.10, A4.
Mayan Smith-Gobat and Brette Harrington have abandoned their attempt at make the first free ascent of Riders on the Storm, the famous big wall up the Central Paine Tower in Patagonia, due to terrible weather.
