Chaehyun Seo blitzing Spain with F8c on-sight and F9a+ redpoint
- Saturday 26th November 2022
South Korean climber Chaehyun Seo, has hit amazing form in Spain this last week firstly repeating La Rambla (F9a+), Siurana and then on-sighting L’atangonista (F8c) at Monstant.
Earlier this week, and starting her sending spree off with a bang, Seo made the second female ascent of La Rambla (F9a+) at Siurana. Having spent only five days on the route, Seo repeated La Rambla on just her seventh attempt. Whilst La Rambla was originally climbed by Alex Huber, the extension, now graded at F9a+, was added by Ramón Julián Puigblanque. Margo Hayes made history by becoming the first female climber to redpoint F9a+ when she did both La Rambla and Biographie in 2017; click here for more on that. Understandably, Seo was delighted saying, “It's been one of my biggest dream in my climbing life and I still can't believe that what happened today.”
Yesterday, and just three days after her ascent of La Rambla, Seo was back in action at the nearby Raco de Misa, Monstant. This particular crag has often drawn competition climbers to attempt the long endurance routes. Famously, Hidrofóbia F8b was flashed by Katie Brown in 1999 and then on-sighted by Josune Bereziartu in 2006 when it was graded F8b+. Seo started her day off with an on-sight of Hidrofóbia which climbs the long overhanging wall on the right of the crag. Not content with on-sighting that however, Seo pulled back on and then battled with the 60m long overhanging complexities of L’atangonista. Finally, Seo clipped the chains after an epic fight on the route which she described saying, “It took me almost an hour. The hardest part for me was at about 55m height. I fought there for almost twenty minutes. I just focused on it and thought that this is the last chance I was getting pumped even though I was resting, so I thought that this is the last chance that I can do the crux. I just grabbed the pocket hold and made a cross over to the bad sloper and I just barely made it.”
Seo’s trip to Spain has seen her send a remarkable number of hard routes including Migranya Profunda (F8b+) and La Pequena Mowgli (F8c) but it is her incredible ascents this week that has taken her to the very pinnacle of female climbing. Her on-sight ascent of L’atangonista now makes her only the second female climber to on-sight F8c (Janja Garnbret has previously on-sighted Fish Eye and American Hustle at Oliana – click here for that report) whilst her repeat of La Rambla makes her the ninth female climber to redpoint F9a+.