15-Year-Old Sends V15 in Fontainebleau
The mega-classic The Big Island V15 is a slopey, technical testpiece
In late April 2023, 15-year-old French climber Samuel Richard sent The Big Island V15 (8C) in Fontainebleau. Mellow just released a film by Timothée Nitschke documenting Richard’s big send, which you can watch below.
Found in the Coquibus Rumont sector of Font, The Big Island is a five-star boulder defined by huge slopers and lots of body tension. It was first established by Vincent Pochon and has gone on to see around 20 repeats. Before completing the problem, Richard had only climbed up to V12, skipping both V13 and V14 with his Big Island send. He climbed his first V12 last year – Gourmandise Raccourci in Font. His second V12 was Red Bull Assis (Sit) in Grenoble that same year.
This is not the first time V15 has been sent been sent by someone this young. In 2016, at only 14 years old, Ashima Shiraishi became the first female to climb V15 with her send of Horizon at Mount Hiei, Japan. Three years later in 2019, Japanese climber Mishka Ishi sent Byaku-Dou V15 at Mount Houri when she was only 13 years old. Oriane Bertone made the first ascent of Satan I Helvete Bas V15 in Fontainebleau when she was 15 years of age in 2020, although the grade of the problem has now settled around V14.
Sam Richard Sends The Big Island V15
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