Anak Verhoeven

Verhoeven started to climb when she was 4 years old.[2] In 2012, when she was sixteen years old, she started participating in the Lead Climbing World Cup.

In 2014, she became the Junior European Champion at the Championships in Edinburgh.[3]

In 2015, she won the World Youth Championship in Italy, where she competed for the last time as a junior.[4] In the same year, she also participated in the Lead Climbing World Cup, where she ranked fourth.

In 2016, she competed at the World Championships in Paris. During the finals, she managed to top the route but fellow competitor Janja Garnbret also topped and won gold due to countback. In the same year, she also ranked second in the Lead Climbing World Cup. Verhoeven ended the 2016 competition season as number 1 on the IFSC World Ranking List.[5]

In 2017, she won both the World Games and IFSC Climbing European Championships.[1]

In September 2017 she did the first ascent of the 9a (5.14d) route Sang neuf at Pierrot Beach in France, becoming the first woman to do a first ascent of that grade.[6] Directly afterwards she established and climbed Sweet Neuf (which links Sang Neuf 9a with the 25 meter second pitch of Home Sweet Home 8c/+) and suggested a 9a+ (5.15a) rating. With this ascent she became the second woman to climb a 9a+ route after Margo Hayes and the first to claim a first ascent of a 9a+ route.[7][8] In June, 2019 Cédric Lachat did the second ascend of Sweet Neuf and confirmed the grade.[9] In December 2017, Verhoven established and climbed the 9a/9a+ route Ciudad de Dios pa la Enmienda in Santa Linya, Spain.[10] She is the first women to have put up a first ascent of a 9a, a 9a/+ or a 9a+ route. In November 2019 she climbed her second 9a+, Joe Mama in Oliana, Spain.[11]

• Profile at belclimb.be