Italian climber Iris Bielli (b. 2004, Lecco) has redpointed Absinthium (9a) at Capanna Bill, above Passo Fedaia in the Dolomites — her first route at the grade.
Bielli was in the Dolomites visiting family when she decided to try The Search (8c+), the line freed by Manuel Prinoth that shares its first 35 metres with Absinthium. After finding it suited her style, she went back the next day to look at the harder upper section added by Andrea Milani, which pushes the grade to 9a.
The send itself came almost by chance: after a first attempt ended just below the 8c+ chains on wet holds in hot, humid conditions, Bielli waited for the evening to cool down, then climbed through her previous high point and continued, relaxed, to the final anchor. The whole route took her around an hour and six sessions in total.
Absinthium already has a notable history and was repeated recently by Laura Rogora. Bielli's ascent adds another name to that list and continues a breakout year that began with her first 8c+, "Il lupo perde il pelo ma non il vizio", earlier in 2026.
No dedicated ascent video has surfaced yet — for more on Bielli's climbing, see this earlier interview: youtube.com/watch?v=eYNo1p_7soM
