Janja Garnbret Completes Her Longest Project Ever
She recently made the first female ascent of a rarely repeated old-school test-piece in Slovenia
Janja Garnbret has made the first female ascent of Za Staro Kolo in Majhnega Psa 5.14c (8c+) in Mišja Peč, Slovenia. The historic route was established by Tadej Slabe in 1992. At the time, it was one of the hardest routes in the world, and since then, it’s seen only around 10 repetitions. A sandbag at 5.14c, many ascensionists believe the route to be hard for the grade. It’s been repeated by top European sport climbers like Adam Ondra, Pedro Pons, Kilian Fischhuber, Jernej Kruder, and Domen Škofic.
“Although it didn’t get a lot of international attention in recent years, it was considered, along with Wolfgang Güllich’s Action Directe and Ben Moon’s Hubble, one of the hardest climbs in the world back in the day and has a special allure among the climbing scene here in [Slovenia] for its unforgiving style and a brutal crux move,” said Garnbret on Instagram about Za Staro Kolo in Majhnega Psa .
“What an iconic route and a real piece of history!” she continued. “I tried the route occasionally since 2022 and never felt strong enough. Came back way stronger this time around and it went down quite fast. Still, it took a good amount of tries and effort to clip the chains. My longest project up to date. If anyone suggests an upgrade I’d agree, but mostly I’m just super happy to finally check this one off my to-do list!!”
The 25-year-old Slovenian is widely considered the most dominant competitive climber in the world. She has dozens of World Cup first-place finishes to her name, as well as two Olympic gold medals. In outdoor sport climbing, she’s redpointed multiple 5.14d routes and onsighted three 5.14b routes. In outdoor bouldering, her greatest accomplishment is the first female ascent of Bügeleisen Sit V15. She’s also ticked several V14s, including Bügeleisen, New Base Line, and Hide and Sick.
