Adam Ondra (born February 5, 1993) is a Czech professional rock climber, specializing in lead climbing, bouldering, and competition climbing. In 2013, Rock & Ice described Ondra as a prodigy and the leading climber of his generation.[1] Ondra is the only male athlete to have won World Championship titles in both disciplines in the same year (2014) and is also the only male athlete to have won the World Cup series in both disciplines (lead climbing in 2009, 2015, and 2019 and bouldering in 2010).
At age 13, Ondra redpointed his first graded 9a (5.14d) sport route. Rock & Ice noted that by 2011, he was "onsighting 5.14c's by the handful", and by 2013, had "more or less repeated every hard route in the world—easily".[1] By end 2018, Ondra had climbed 1,550 sport routes between grades 8a (5.13b) and 9c (5.15d), of which one was a 9c (5.15d), three were 9b+ (5.15c), and three were onsights of 9a (5.14d).[2]
Ondra is the first climber to redpoint a route with a proposed grade of 9c (5.15d) (Silence, 2017),[3] the first-ever climber to redpoint a 9b+ (5.15c) route (Change, 2012),[4] the first-ever to flash a 9a+ (5.15a) route (Supercrackinette, 2018), and the second ever to onsight a 9a (5.14d) route (Cabane au Canada, 2013).[5] According to The Economist, Ondra is "regarded as possibly the best climber ever to fondle rock".[6]
Ondra started climbing at the age of six; his parents are climbers, and they shared their passion with him. In 1999, at age six, in Rovinj, Croatia, Ondra climbed a 6a (5.10a) route with bolts every half meter. He quickly rose to fame, appearing in climbing magazines as his accomplishments became both more impressive and frequent:
In 2001, (at age eight), he onsighted 7b+ (5.12c) routes.
In 2002, (at age nine), he onsighted 7c+ (5.13a) and redpointed 8a (5.13b).
Ondra failed to qualify for the 2020 Summer Olympics at the 2019 IFSC Climbing World Championships, as he was disqualified for accidentally toeing a bolt during the lead climbing portion of the combined event.[10] However, at the Olympic qualifying event in Toulouse later that year, he managed to secure a place in the Olympic Games,[11] despite falling ill after reaching the finals of the event.
In April 2021 Ondra won gold in the bouldering discipline at the IFSC World Cup in Meiringen, Switzerland. This marked his 20th World Cup gold medal.[12] In August 2021, Ondra finished in sixth place at the 2020 Summer Olympics.[13]
On February 7, 2013, Ondra ascended La Dura Dura in Oliana, Catalonia, Spain, his second 9b+ (5.15c) after Change. He worked on this project with American climber Chris Sharma, and the first ascent took Ondra nine weeks.[16] On February 9, 2013, two days after La Dura Dura, Ondra succeeded in the second ascent of the 9b (5.15b) route, Fight or flight, first climbed by Sharma in 2011.[17] On July 9, 2013, Ondra realized the second-ever onsight of a 9a (5.14d) route in history, after Alexander Megos, with the ascent of Cabane au Canada in Rawyl, Switzerland.[5]
On November 21, 2016, Ondra completed the second free ascent of the 1,000-metre granite route, The Dawn Wall, a 32-pitch grade 5.14d (9a) big wall climbing route at El Capitan in the Yosemite Valley. The route was widely regarded as the hardest big wall climbing route in the world. Ondra led every pitch and completed the project in 8 days (the first ascenders, Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson alternated leads, and spent 19 days on the wall).[18]
On April 23, 2017, Ondra set a new highpoint for Black Diamond's The Project indoor sport route in Stockholm, Sweden, which is believed to be the hardest in the world.[19]
On September 3, 2017, after about 4 years of dedicated work and training, Ondra climbed Silence, in the Hanshelleren Cave in Flatanger, Norway. Silence was the world's first-ever route to have a proposed grade of 9c (5.15d).[3] On February 10, 2018, Ondra completed the world's first-ever flash of a confirmed 9a+ (5.15a) route with his ascent of Super Crackinette in Saint-Léger du Ventoux, France.[20]
The table below shows the large number of routes graded 8a (5.13b) or more ascended by Adam Ondra in about 16 years, from August 2, 2002 (when he redpointed his first 8a) to November 10, 2018.[2] The total number is 1554, of which one was at 9c (5.15d) and 725 were onsighted, including four onsights at 9a (5.14d) and one flash at 9a+ (5.15a).[2]
Silence (originally known as Project hard) - Flatanger (NOR) - September 3, 2017 - First ascent, and world's first-ever proposed 9c (5.15d) route (the grade has to be confirmed).[3][23]
Zvěřinec (Menagerie) - Holštejn (CZE) - November 20, 2022 - First ascent - Adam claims this as his hardest 9b+ and therefore the second hardest route of his life.[24]
Disbelief - Acephale (CAN) - July 20, 2018 - First ascent [25]
Eagle-4 - St. Léger (FRA) - February 13, 2018 - First ascent
One Slap - Arco (ITA) - November 13, 2017 - First ascent
Move Hard - Flatanger (NOR) - July 10, 2017 - First ascent (link-up of two neighboring routes; through first crux of Move into second crux of Silence, at the time known as Project Hard)
Lapsus - Andonno (ITA) - April 20, 2017 - Second ascent [26]
Queen Line - Laghel (Arco, ITA) - April 19, 2017 - First ascent [27]
Mamichula - Oliana (ESP) - February 8, 2017 - First ascent [28]
Robin Ud - Alternativna stena (SVK) - October 5, 2016 - First ascent[29]
First Round First Minute - Margalef (ESP) - February 3, 2014 - Second ascent of Chris Sharma's route
Move - Flatanger (NOR) - August 20, 2013 - First ascent. Ondra graded the route "9b/9b+, or just hard 9b".[30] Repeated on June 17, 2019 by Seb Bouin, who later on upgraded the route to 9b+.[31]
Iron Curtain - Flatanger (NOR) - August 3, 2013 - First ascent
Fight or flight - Oliana (ESP) - February 9, 2013 - Second ascent of Chris Sharma's route (2011)[17]
The east face of Monkey Face at Smith Rock, containing Just do it (8c+), onsighted by Ondra in 2018. When it was first ascended by Tribout, Just do it was considered the hardest route in the USA.[49]
Big Paw - Chironico (CHE) - November 29, 2010 - Third ascent of Dave Graham's boulder (2008)[77]
Multi-pitch routes
Karambony East Face - Tough Enough route runs in the middle
The Dawn Wall - El Capitan (USA) - 3,000 feet (915 meters) tall - 32 pitches, at least two of which graded 9a (5.14d). Described as the hardest big wall in the world.
