10-Year-Olds Climb 5.14a in Kentucky, Italy

4/4/12 - Nowadays, 5.14a ascents don't typically make the news—unless, of course, they're made by 10-year-olds. Brooke Raboutou, daughter of Robyn Erbesfield-Raboutou, recently climbed her first 5.14a with God's Own Stone in the Red River Gorge, Kentucky.

This makes her the youngest female, and likely the youngest American, to send this grade. Team ABC, a youth climbing team based in Boulder and coached by Robyn, was there to witness the ascent. Brooke took only five tries over two days to make the redpoint.

Last spring, Brooke climbed Swingline (5.13d), also at the Red, along with Snooker (5.13a) and Skin Boat (5.13a). A couple months later, she redpointed Esaú directa and Bad Attitude (5.13c), in Spain and France, respectively.

The same day, in Tetto di Sarre, Italy, Tito Traversa had just as successful a day as Brooke. The 10-year-old Italian climber climbed his first 5.14a with Sarsifal. Tito redpointed the first half of the line, Lovely Cali (5.13d), last year, and climbed the first half of the extension into Sarsifal. This year, he linked the entire climb. (Watch Tito on Lovely Cali below.)

In 2011, Tito climbed seven 5.13d's in France and Italy.

These ascents come on the heels of 10-year-old Ashima Shiraishi's groundbreaking ascent of Crown of Aragorn (V13), in Hueco Tanks Texas—she is the youngest person ever to climb the grade, and one of very few females to climb a confirmed V13.

Date of ascents: March 29, 2012