9A Boulder Counter | Samuel Richard scores “Soudain Seul”

18-year-old Samuel Richard has competed in Fontainebleau with »Soudain Seul«. as the youngest person ever I've cracked the hardest grade in bouldering. How many 9As are there now, anyway?

With his repetition of »Soudain Seul(9A) in Fontainebleau At the end of October, French professional climber Samuel Richard broke into the hardest grade of bouldering. He stated that it took him 27 sessions – a true milestone for the 18-year-old all-round climber and now the youngest 9A boulderer in the world.

Don't be afraid of big dreams.

This very attitude had already motivated Samuel Richard in the spring of 2023 to choose the higher starting point for »Soudain Seul« to address: »Big Island“(8C). The iconic compression boulder and Fontainebleau classic of 2009 was the hardest project to date for the then 15-year-old, who had previously only bouldered 8A+.”

Since then, not only has some time passed, but the young Frenchman has also collected some difficult lines in the eighth French grade – including most recently »Power of Now Direct« (8C) or »Never Ending Story« (8B+) in Magic Wood.

Richard also climbs with a book under his kneepad.

For his repeat of "Soudain Seul," the 1,69 m tall Samuel Richard, like Simon Lorenzi and later Nico Pelorson, used a book under his kneepad. Adam Ondra, who repeated the line earlier this year, refrained from this controversial bouldering hack due to his height.

The Czech had no criticism to offer – quite the opposite. Ondra called Lorenzi's book trick "ingenious". and "significantly less problematic than the use of fans on the Crux-Sloper".

Samuel Richard's ascent is one of several 9A repeats and first ascents in 2025. It's high time, therefore, for an update to the editorial 9A counter.

There are now so many 9As

The grade 9A was first awarded in 2016. The corresponding lineage is still considered the benchmark for the grade: Nalle Hukkataivals. Burden of Dreams in Lappnor, Finland. During our latest inventory of the world's hardest boulders In the summer of 2022, we counted four confirmed 9As worldwide. In the roughly three and a half years since then, this number has risen to a remarkable ten.

Confirmed boulders graded 9A (as of November 27, 2025)

These 9As are still waiting for repetitions

Lines whose grade has not yet been confirmed by repeat ascentionists are listed separately below. Currently, there are four boulders for which the respective first ascensionists have suggested a difficulty of 9A or harder – three of these are from this year alone. Elias Iagnemma also established "Exodia" in November. potentially the world's first 9A+ .

Special case “L'ombre du voyageur”

Things get a bit special in the case of the boulder »L'ombre du voyageur"in Le Salève near Geneva, which follows a crack in the roof for over ten meters. The exceptional French climber "Barefoot Charles" Albert He proposed the grade 9A for it after his first ascent in autumn 2023 – which he had completed without shoes, it should be noted.

Since then, there has been repeated speculation that the level would not be sustainable in the long term. Last summer, it finally happened: The Italian Pietro Vidi Vidi downgraded the boulder to 8B+ after his ascent. Unlike Albert, Vidi used two kneepads, crack gloves, and climbing shoes. While the Italian acknowledged the first ascensionist's achievement, the downgrade sparked debate about the grading of boulder problems based on the equipment used.

That might interest you

• 9A boulder Megatron repeated for the first time | Hamish McArthur
• Adam Ondra cracks 9A boulder Soudain Seul | Fontainebleau

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Credits cover photo: Timothée Nitschke