Stefano Ghisolfi frees TCT 9a at Gravere

20-year-old Stefano Ghisolfi had a successful weekend at Gravere close to the town of Susa in Northern Italy where he clinched the first ascent of his "super project", TCT. The route in question is a combination of two existing routes, L'extrema cura 8c and Base jump 8b+, and climbs the hardest section of these to create a new 9a. For the climber from Turin this success means far more than just his hardest climb to date; as the initials imply, TCT is dedicated to Tito Claudio Traversa, the youngster who died last July as a result of a terrible climbing accident in France.

Ghisolfi told Planetmountain: "I remember the last time I saw Tito was at Gravere, he was trying a route that shared the same start as mine, Pablo Diretta 8b+. I was really impressed with the way he tried it, all the moves and holds were different to mine because he was much shorter, and a few days later he sent it. A few days before the tragic accident. When I started working on the route he always sprung to mind and I decided that if one day I'd free the route, then I'd name dedicate it to him."

Talking about Traversa and remembering : the first “Memorial Tito Traversa” will take place on the 14th and 15th of June at Ivrea ,Tito's hometown. The event is part of the Active Eporedia Days (EAD) and is much more than simply a boulder contest split into the categories Open, Under 14 , Under 12 and Under 10, It is intended to be two beautiful sport days, everyone together, big and small alike, to remember the past and to look forward to the future. Needless to say, everyone is invited. To find out more and to register visit www.eporediaactivedays.com