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Babsi Zangerl Repeats Sprengstoff 5.14d in Austria

It's the second ascent of the steep line that was bolted more than two decades ago

Austrian crusher Barbara “Babsi” Zangerl has made the second ascent of Sprengstoff 5.14d in Lorünser Wändle, Austria, after a month of projecting. Jacopo Larcher made the first ascent last fall. It was bolted over 20 years ago by the legendary Beat Kammerlander.

Zangerl is one of the world’s leading climbers with a number of big sends to her name, including three free climbs on El Cap: Zodiac VI 5.13, Magic Mushroom VI 5.14 and El Nino VI 5.13. She also made the first female ascent of the Alpine Trilogy in the Alps: Kaisers Neue Kleider 5.14, Silbergeier 5.14 and End of Silence 5.14.

For trad routes, she’s made the first female ascents of Prinzip Hoffnung 5.13dR and Achemine 5.13+R. Before now, her hardest sport route to date iwas Speed Integrale 5.14d, which she sent in 2018.

Also in 2018, she repeated The Shadow 5.13 in Squamish and became the first woman to climb The Path 5.14R at Back of the Lake. She spent the past year at home training and might head to the Trango Towers this summer.

In 2019, she was awarded National Geographic adventurer of the year. “Whenever I manage something that is at my personal limit, it’s an incredible feeling that encourages me to carry on and to explore new boundaries,” said Zangerl.

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