Adam Ondra admitted that his famous route Change in Flatanger, Norway, originally rated 9b+, could have a lower difficulty rating given today's climbing methods. This was revealed in a recent interview with Adam Ondra published by Norwegian climber Leo Bøe, who was the sixth person to climb this route. Change was created in 2012 as the first ever 9b+ route.

Since then, Stefano Ghisolfi, Seb Bouin, Alex Megos, and Jorge Díaz-Rullo have also climbed it. All except Adam Ondra used knee pads and newer beta, with some suggesting a grade of 9b/b+.

Adam Ondra said in an interview that respect for the author often prevents climbers from suggesting a lower difficulty rating, but he also admitted that today's climbing style could justify a lower grade.

If Change's grade is indeed lowered, the title of the first 9b+ route would go to La Dura Dura in Oliana, Spain, which Adam Ondra climbed in 2013 and was later repeated by Chris Sharma. Adam's other 9b+ route, Vasil Vasil in the Moravian Karst from 2013, remains unrepeated as of January 2026, as does Zvěřinec in the Moravian Karst from 2022.

The interview with Adam Ondra begins at 5:41 in the film below:



Adam's diary on Lezec.cz:

Deníček - Ondra Adam (dipsy)

Source:

gripped.com: Adam Ondra Talks About Downgrading Change, His Groundbreaking 5.15c