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“Finally Get To See More Than 30 Seconds”: Italian Climber Stuns Everyone With His First Ascent of the Hardest Route in the World

Published 02/09/2023, 1:30 PM EST

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Reaching the top of the mountain and viewing the beautifully lit skies and vast landscapes always feel magical. However, for rock climbers, these achievements may have an even deeper meaning. It may be the accomplishment of doing something impossible. And that’s exactly how Italian climber Stefano Ghisolfi feels after reaching the top of the renowned Excalibur.

Earlier this week, the rock climber also shared his first ascent video of one of the hardest routes in the world, featuring British climber William Bosi. And unsurprisingly, the video seems to have blown-away people’s minds, as his first fight against the hardest route was a success.

The King of Excalibur

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In his latest YouTube video, Ghisolfi shared his progress after his first ascent of project ‘Excalibur’. The 5.15c (9b+) grade mountain (graded by Ghisolfi), is located in Drena, in Arco, Italy. The Excalibur was originally bolted by Cristian Dorigatti and Morris Fontanari, who started this project. In the video’s description, Ghisolfi wrote, “Last December @WilliamBosi joined me in Arco and we teamed up to fight Excalibur ⚔️ With each other’s help we both made huge progress on the route, proving once again how crucial teamwork is on these cutting edge projects 🗡️”

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In the video, the Olympian also included the attempts of his fellow climber Bosi, who also shocked the fans with his progress, although the lane remains a work in progress for the Britisher. Besides, Ghisolfi and Bosi, famous climber Adam Ondra had also attempted the insane rock but decided to withdraw from the project due to the risks of injuries involved in the process.

And a couple of days ago, Ghisolfi finally had a perfect end to this journey, as he looked around a familiar yet different top-view.  While the climber already celebrated his success of reaching the Excalibur summit, his fans are still not over his first ascent.

When Stefano Ghisolfi became a ‘rockstar’ in the rock-climbing world

Fans were not just impressed, but ‘IMPRESSED’ by the ‘Italian King’s’ brilliant attempt:

“That last go by Stefano was so impressive. Can’t believe he won’t eventually put this thing down. Both Will and Stefano seemed to be doing better than Ondra (except for the jump start variation lol)”

“that last attempt.. SO CLOSE.. love the pure silence w just stefano’s breathing while resting.”

“God damn, Stafano’s output has been just so god damn good lately!”

“It is so cool watching the process you’ve been going through on this route and how you’re sharing it with others.”

 

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A post shared by Stefano Ghisolfi (@steghiso)

While many others were happy to see Bosi alongside Ghisolfi and his execution on the rock:

“Freaking lovin’ Will’s resting position, with the left foot over the right knee!”

“Beast of a route, thanks for showing Wills attempts as well, GL with it dude.”

“YES! Finally get to see more than 30 seconds of what Will’s been up to! And well worth the wait it was, too! 😃Great to see you both tackle this!

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Moreover, the duo and their teamwork left many feeling emotional:

“I believe we are living the golden age of climbing. For two reasons: ️
▶️the strongest climbers join their forces for the best️
▶️Such amazing immersive videos”

“Stefano and Bosi…. difficult to imagine a sweeter duo, up there with Shawn and Brooke on the wholesomeness-scale”

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Now that everyone is left surprised by the first ascent video, people cannot wait to see what the final success video has in store for them.

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Written by:

Soumya Bontra

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Soumya Bontra is a US Sports author for EssentiallySports. She has been working as a sports journalist and writer for the past two years. Soumya has a Bachelor’s in Mass Media.
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Edited by:

Jahnabi Choudhury