The news

On 30 March 2012 American climber Alex Honnold soloed Fiesta del biceps at Riglos de Mallos, Spain.

Akiyo Noguchi and Jakob Schubert have won the first stage of the Bouldering World Cup 2012 Chongqing in China. The first stage of the Speed World Cup was won by Dmitrii Timofeev and Alina Gaydamakina.

In the Bavella mountain range in Corsica Matteo della Bordella and David Bacci have made the first ascent of Sintomi strani and have repeated De Rerum Natura, established by Rolando Larcher and Maurizio Oviglia.

The ninth Melloblocco, the world's most important bouldering meeting, takes place in Val Masino, Sondrio, Italy from 3 - 6 May 2012.

El Cap in L'Aquila will host the first leg of the Salewa Rockshow 2012. Daniele Adriani, the president of this historic climbing club, talks about the event which marks a yearned-for new beginning after the terrible earthquake which devastated the Italian city in 2009.

A video which, starting from Patagonia, explores the happiness of life itself.

Austrian climber Johanna Ernst has sent her first 8c+, Open your Mind in Spain.

An unusuak climbing video in search of the bouldering at Chironico, Switzerland.

Caroline Ciavaldini and James Pearson have repeated Mezzogiorno di Fuoco (8b, 270m) at Punta Giradili and Amico Fragile (8b, 230m) at Monte Donneittu in Sardinia.

On 19/02/2012 Giorgio Iurato and Gabriele Puccia made the first ascent of Rosa dei venti (210m, 6c) at Cava grande del Cassibile (Siracusa, Sicily). The report by Gabriele Puccia.

On 16/03/2012 Daniele Natali and Tito Arosio made the first winter ascent of Via Paco (7b (6c+ obligatory), 400m), while a day later Maurizio Panseri and Fulvio Zanetti made the first winter ascent of Via Bosio (7a+ (6°+ obligatory) 430m) up the North Face of Presolana, Italy.

In March 2012 Nicolas Favresse, Sean Villanueva, Stephane Hanssens and Jean-Louis Wertz established Maria Rosa (7b, 500m) and Apichavai (8a+, 500m) on Amuri Tepui in Venezuela. The trip report by Nico Favresse.

Spanish climber Nacho Sánchez has freed Insomnio at Cova de la Gota at Crevillente, Spain.

In December 2011 and January 2012 Slovenian climbers Luka Krajnc and Matic Obid repeated a number of routes on Acopan Tepui and established their Miss Acopan (7b, 250m).

On 24 and 25 March the riverbed in Val Rosandra was cleaned, and highly contested, by environmentalists.

On 25-26/02/2012 Alessandro Baù and Enrico Geremia carried out the first repeat, and first winter ascent, of the route Andamento Lento in Val Scura (Dolomites), established by Gigi Dal Pozzo, Maurizio Fontana and Venturino De Bona in 1997. The report by Alessandro Baù.