On 6 June Janja Garnbret made the first female ascent of Bibliographie, the 9b+ sport climb at Céüse in France, becoming only the second woman in the world to climb the grade. The 27-year-old Slovenian completed the route on her fifth trip to the limestone crag in the Hautes-Alpes, always with Bibliographie in mind.
Bibliographie was bolted by Ethan Pringle in 2009 and freed by Alexander Megos in 2020 following 60 days of effort. Megos initially graded the route 9c, but Stefano Ghisolfi downgraded it to 9b+ after the second ascent in August 2021, a consensus accepted by subsequent ascensionists Sean Bailey, Sébastien Bouin and Jorge Díaz-Rullo. The route is characterised by sustained resistance climbing with more than 80 demanding moves over 35 metres, with two distinct crux sections and minimal rest.
Garnbret first attempted the route shortly after the 2024 Olympics in Paris. The successful ascent came on her final day at Céüse before returning to the competition circuit. After facing warm conditions throughout the trip, significantly cooler temperatures and strong wind provided the friction she needed on the bullet-proof limestone.
A send in solitude.
The ascent came unexpectedly. “On what was planned to be a warm-up on the route, I just felt perfect and kept going,” Garnbret explained. “I was just in my own bubble, in my own world, just doing what I love most. Unlike other days, not a lot of people were at the crag, so no loud cheering. It was one of the most serene moments in my rock climbing career.”
Garnbret becomes the first woman to climb Bibliographie and only the second woman to achieve 9b+, following Brooke Raboutou‘s ascent of Excalibur at Arco in April 2025. The route marks her hardest to date. “This route lit a fire in me,” she said. “It made me feel something special, and I kept coming back to it. It definitely helped me become a better athlete and a better climber.”
She described the achievement as the accumulation of everything learned over the past two years. “This route taught me that with a calm mind and with patience, anything can happen. Never count yourself out – until the very last try, you need to fight hard.”
Source: PlanetMountain.
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