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Margo Hayes first female ascent of Biographie 9a+ at Céüse

Sport climbing: on 24 September 2017 Margo Hayes repeated Biographie 9a+ at Ceuse in France. In doing so the American has made the first female ascent of this mega climb freed by Chris Sharma in 2001.

Planetmountain

September 2017

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On 24/09/2017 Margo Hayes made the coveted first female ascent of Biographie 9a+ at Céüse, France, first climbed in 2001 by Chris Sharma. This unprecedented success comes in the wake of the American's ascent of La Rambla at Siurana in Spain last February, thanks to which she became the first woman in the world to climb 9a+.

Matty Hong

Margo Hayes has done it again. After becoming the first woman in the world to climb a 9a+ sports route with La Rambla at Siurana in Spain last February, the American has now pulled off the first female ascent of Biographie at Céüse. The stamina test was originally freed in 2001 by Chris Sharma and in the last 16 years it has evolved into one of, if not the most coveted climb of its grade.

Until yesterday no woman had ever managed to link these 60+ overhanging moves in one go, even if of late different women had begun to consider taking on the challenge in earnest.

This summer, for example, 19-year-old Hayes started working the line, as did Italy’s young Laura Rogora, but although both made important headway the 7C boulder crux towards the end of the route thwarted their efforts. Not even a fortnight ago Slovenia’s Janja Garnbret fell off the last hard move - for the record on only her sixth attempt - but she too was forced to move on. And now the amazing news just in is that Hayes has finally breached the long blue water streak first bolted at the start of the ’90’s by French ace climber and alpinist Jean-Christophe Lafaille.

Time will be needed to find out more, but it’s clear that with this historic double - La Rambla and Biographie - Hayes checks in as one of the strongest climbers of all times. Confirmed, if confirmation were needed, by the Wild Country Rock Award she received at the August Arco Rock Legends.

TOPO: the crag Céüse

BIOGRAPHIE -THE ROUTE'S HISTORY
bolted by Jean-Christophe Lafaille, climbed to half-height by Arnaud Petit in 1996. The extension was freed by Chris Sharma in 2001 and called Realization.
Chris Sharma, USA, 2001
Sylvain Millet, France, 2004
Patxi Usobiaga, Spain, 2004
Dave Graham, USA, 2007
Ethan Pringle, USA, 2007
Ramón Julián Puigblanque, Spain, 2008
Enzo Oddo, France, 2010
Jonathan Siegrist, USA, 2014
Alexander Megos, Germany, 2014
Adam Ondra, Czech Republic, 2014
Sachi Amma, Japan, 2014
Stefano Ghisolfi, Italy, 2015
Jon Cardwell, USA, 2016
Sean Bailey, USA, 2016
Margo Hayes, USA, 2017