Eva Hammelmüller Climbs Wild 5.14d in Arco

Austrian crusher Eva Hammelmüller clipped the chains on Omen Nomen (5.14d/9a) in Arco, Italy, likely the route’s first female ascent. The Stefano Ghisolfi testpiece, originally graded 5.14c in 2017, has since been bumped to 5.14d and boasts an A-list roster of senders, including Gio Placci, Filip Schenk, and Adam Ondra. 

“A dream that started in 2021 came true this past weekend,” Hammelmüller wrote. She first eyed Omen Nomen as a potential 9a, but back then, she admits, “I wasn’t ready, my fingers weren’t strong enough and neither was my biceps.”

Fast-forward: years of training, a return trip to Arco, and suddenly the cruxes that once shut her down flowed together. “After four cool days in Padaro with friends, the job was done,” she said. “Clipping the anchor of this iconic and popular route truly felt amazing and so incredibly rewarding.”

Omen Nomen marks Hammelmüller’s fourth 9a. Her progression has been fierce: Underground (5.14c/d) in 2021, her first 5.14d with Hades in Innsbruck in early 2024, and then a whirlwind February in France and Spain where she stacked hard redpoints and flashes like cordwood, two 5.14a redpoints and a 5.13d flash in France; another 5.13d flash plus a 5.14b in Oliana; then the Ramon Julián classic Esclatamàsters (5.14d) in just four sessions. She kept rolling with Blanquita, La Morenita, Joe Blau (all 5.14c), T-1 Full Equip and Crimptonite (5.14a), and even onsighted Humildes pa Casa (5.14a).

A breakthrough years in the making, and a reminder that when the homework’s done, Arco’s unforgiving limestone just might play nice.