These Four Climbers Have Free-Soloed 5.14

There have been a lot of great free-solo climbers over the past 150 years, but only a few have dared to go cordless on a 5.14a (8b+) or harder sport route. Watch each of these climbs below.

In April 2004, Alexander Huber made history by free-soloing Kommunist 5.14a. After his climb, he said, “The long, reachy moves demand powerful climbing and don’t give me any chance to think about what I am doing,” He called his 5.14 free-solo a “search for my limits” and said that he had found them.

Then in 2008, Dave MacLeod free-soloed Darwin Dixit in Margalef, Spain. At the time it was graded 5.14b, which made it the hardest free-solo to date, but it was then downgraded to 5.14a. However, after a hold broke it was bumped back up to 5.14b.

In 2021, Jorge Díaz-Rullo free-soloed Darwin Dixit as a 5.14b. That same year, Alfredo Webber, who was 52 at the time, free-soloed Panem et Circenses 5.14b in Arco. Several of the world’s hardest bouldering highballs could be considered 5.14 free-solos. Free-soloing is not recommended and is best left to the pros.

Alexander Huber

Dave MacLeod

Jorge Diaz-Rullo

Alfredo Webber