Twelve-year-old South Korean Ga-eun Kwon has become the second youngest person ever to repeat Chris Sharma's Margalef classic "Era Vella" (9a).
The 51-year-old Briton recently caused a stir. Tim Emmett with its repetition of »Era Vella“(9a) for an age record in Chris Sharma’s Margalef classic. Now, one of the youngest people ever has repeated the famous line in the La Visera de La Coma sector. Ga-eun Kwon, a twelve-year-old climber from South Korea, sent the route on December 5th.”
Two years after my 8c+, I finally wanted to climb my first 9a: the legendary »Era Vella« in Margalef.
Ga-eun Kwon
Ga-eun Kwon holds record for most recent 8c+ ascent
This isn't the first time the young Korean climber has attracted attention with difficult ascents. In 2023, at the age of ten years and three months, she became the youngest person to climb an 8c+ ("Southern Smoke," Red River Gorge). "Era Vella" is now her first 9a, for which she needed a total of six attempts over three days.
Rare climbing trips to Europe
In an interview with 8a.nu Ga-eun Kwon, together with her father and coach Kwon Young Hye, explains why the three-week stay in Margalef was so special: "Because we come from Asia, we can't travel to Europe very often. Every trip is rare and often requires months of preparation." Finding a suitable 9a class for Ga-eun Kwon's height was a major challenge.
Era Vella is world-famous. Its endurance characteristics and the angle of the wall suit Ga-eun's climbing style well.
Father Kwon Young Hye
"Era Vella" proved to be the ideal choice. The 50-meter-long, crimpy route is suitable for climbers of all sizes and, due to its popularity, is very well documented in videos. Since Chris Sharma established the route in 2010, many (including shorter) professional climbers have repeated "Era Vella." In 2023, she succeeded. Michaela Kiersch, at the end of 2024 it scored Leo Cea the line at the record age of eleven years and eleven months.
Daily training and competition life in South Korea
According to 8a.nu Ga-eun Kwon was introduced to climbing at an early age in her parents' climbing gym, where she has trained systematically since the age of six. Besides her annual outdoor climbing holiday abroad, the twelve-year-old focuses primarily on bouldering and lead climbing competitions. A few months ago, she won the Korean Youth Lead Cup in the U13 category.
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Credits cover photo: Ga-eun Kwon