Here I am finally in Norway! A few days ago I arrived in Flatanger where, as announced, I will begin my chase to climb Silence, the most difficult route in the world. I arrived here after an intense period of competitions, which has followed about ten days of quarantine due to Covid.

At the end of July I took part in the Rock Master, an international competition in Arco where the strongest athletes are invited to face two races: the KO boulder and the historic duel. These two specialties have different formulas than the official races: in particular, the duel is a race with the rope, in which there are two identical routes side by side and the winner is the one who arrives first at the top. It’s like speed climbing, but with much higher difficulty, and you lead climb. The duel did not go very well, I had won last year but this year I was not comfortable. Instead, it went well in bouldering where I finished third. The KO boulder is a particular formula, because it starts with eight people and then after each boulder, two climbers are eliminated until the final. I thought I wasn’t competitive but I got on the podium and it was a pleasant surprise!

Then I left for Munich to participate in the European Championships. I felt good but unfortunately I couldn’t prove what I had in my mind. The climbing competitions are always different, there are many variables and this time unfortunately it went wrong. I can’t understand why, I can’t give myself an explanation, now I will simply have to reset everything and start again with confidence for the Italian Championship in Arco at the end of October. That of Monaco, beyond the result, has been a good experience: there was a nice atmosphere, we were all together, it was a kind of small Olympics and even in the city you could breathe the air of a great sports festival.

After the European Championships, I immediately left for Norway! All the way in our van from Monaco to Denmark, then also a stop in Oslo, and finally Flatanger: the trip went well, I arrived here on August 17th and I started immediately with a few days of testing in which I began to try the route and try the single movements. Unpretentious, I am understanding the difficulty and expectations, I am trying to figure out how to move and become familiar with the route. In particular, I tried two parts: the first is more difficult and I still need time, in the second I felt better and I understood how to do it.

Here it is beautiful, a splendid place, a true paradise for climbers. I’m here with my girlfriend Sara and other guys who help me with videos and photos. There are good weather conditions, sometimes it rains but the weather changes very quickly and above all there is light until very late: I can then take it easy, go climbing from noon until nine in the evening and then we return to Climb Flatanger, the campsite where we have placed our campervan. There is also a small village nearby where we can do shopping.

As you know I had already been here two years ago to climb Change 9b+, but now it is the turn of Silence which is the first 9c in the world. I want to climb as much as possible, I will stop here a month to understand whether to return next year and seriously try to send the route. I will tell you about my experience among the fjords, both on the blog and through videos that will be published every Thursday: do not miss them!