10 Hard Onsights and Flashes by Adam Ondra
His history-making sends include the first-ever 5.15a flash and several 5.14+ onsights
Adam Ondra has been one of the world’s best rock climbers for the past 15 years, with multiple groundbreaking first ascents and repeats to his name. At 13, he redpointed his first 5.14d and in 2017 he climbed the world’s first 5.15d with Silence.
By 2019, he’d climbed 1,550 sport routes above 5.13b, including three 5.15c and a three 5.14d onsights. He was the first to climb a 5.15c with Change in 2012, the first to flash a 5.15a with Supercrackinette in 2018, and the second ever to onsight a 5.14d with Cabane au Canada in 2013. According to The Economist, Ondra is “regarded as possibly the best climber ever to fondle rock.”
About his historic 5.15a flash, he said, “The first half of the route, I was just flying up the route. It was like I was feeling cosmically strong and that boosted my confidence a lot. Only towards the second half of the route were there a couple of moments where I felt like I was losing my confidence a bit because there were two pockets where my fingers were just too fat to dig deeper but I still somehow made it and then I had just enough energy to do the last hard move on the very top. Getting to the anchor was really emotional and I see this 5.15 definitely as one of the best accomplishments that I have ever done.”
Beside flashing 5.15a, Ondra has made more difficult onsights and flashes than any other climber. Watch 10 of them below.
