Adam Ondra
“I live to climb, I climb to feel alive.”
Adam started climbing when he was about three years old and his talent became evident very soon. In 2001 (at age 8), he onsighted his first 7b+ (5.12c). Onsight of his first 7c+ (5.13a) and redpoint of 8a (5.13b) came a year later. During the following four years, he onsighted 8a (5.13b), 8a+ (5.13c), 8b (5.13d), and redpointed 8c (5.14b) and 9a (5.14d). In 2009 (at age 16), he won his first gold medal in lead Climbing World Cup and first silver medal in lead Climbing World Championships, both in the adults category.
In 2012 (at age 19), he redpointed and was the first to scale Change (Flatanger, NOR), the world’s first 9b+ (5.15c). The next year, he redpointed and made the first ascent of La Dura Dura (Oliana, ESP) and Vasil Vasil (Sloup, CZE), both graded 9b+ (5.15c). In 2016 (at age 23), he repeated Dawn Wall (El Capitan, USA), a multi-pitch, 915-meter-high route, in just 8 days. The route was redpointed by Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson a year before. Their ascent took 19 days. In 2017 (at age 24), Adam returned to Flatanger in Norway to redpoint and be the first to top Silence, the world’s first 9c (5.15d). Last great achievement came in 2018, when he was able to flash Super Crackinette (Saint-Léger-du-Ventoux, FRA), a route classified as 9a+ (5.15a).
Top accents
SILENCE 9c (5.15d)
FALTANGER
NORWAY
FIRST ASCENT
SEPTEMBER 3, 2017
CHANGE 9b+ (5.15c)
FALTANGER
NORWAY
FIRST ASCENT
DECEMBER 4, 2013
SUPER CRACKINETTE 9a+ (5.15a)
SAINT-LÉGER DU VENTOUX
FRANCE
FLASH
FEBRUARY 10, 2018
DAWN WALL 9a (5.14d)
YOSEMITE NP
CALIFORNIA, USA
SECOND ASCENT
NOVEMBER 21, 2016
Number of routes 8a and higher
9c
1
9b+
4
9b
22
9a+
47
9a
127
8c+
169
8c
195
8b+
214
8b
295
8a+
330
8a
341