Adam Ondra has become the first person to flash Jerry Moffatt's iconic boulder, The Ace (f8B), at Stanage Plantation.

The Ace, a low start to another of Moffatt's problems, the short and explosive classic The Joker (f8A), is one of Britain's most famous boulder problems, and has attracted some of the best climbers of the last two decades, including Ben Moon, Malcolm Smith, Jan Hojer, Will Bosi, and Aidan Roberts.

At Font 8B, Ondra's flash of The Ace is the hardest gritstone flash of all time.

Taking to instagram to share the news of the flash, Adam said:

'I have just come back from an intense week in Sheffield in the UK. A lot of exciting stuff was filmed, and you can look forward to quite a few exciting videos! [Including] flashing one of the last hard 'Jerry' problems, The Ace 8B on the grit at Stanage'.

According to 8a.nu, Adam described the ascent as a 'Freak moment! Executed just perfectly!' partly in thanks to beta from other climbers, including Will Bosi, who was there with Adam on the day, and who climbed The Ace in 2020. Adam also thanked 'the legend himself Jerry' and Magnus Midtbø for their support.

Adam's flash of The Ace becomes even more impressive when put into the wider context of the boulder, which took Moffatt - one of the best climbers of his generation - more than three years of persistent effort. Having climbed The Joker in 1996, it wasn't until the early 2000s that Moffatt finally made the first ascent of The Ace.

Speaking about the FA in Climber Magazine, Moffatt said:

'If the truth be known, it had been my goal for the last three years; either I'd just not been in good enough shape to try it, or the conditions were not right. As soon as I started trying The Ace everybody who had done The Joker was attempting it this way, which added to the pressure. My advantage was that I felt good on The Joker. If I could just get into the top moves feeling strong, I knew I could do it'.

'My sequence didn't feel right though and I was intrigued to find out about an alternative sequence Ben Moon had been trying. First chance I had I went straight back to the crag and tried his method. I hit the top second go but couldn't hold it. The friction wasn't good that day, but I returned in better conditions and got it done'.

Adam's short trip to Sheffield also featured crack climbing with Tom Randall and Pete Whittaker, a visit to the 'infamous' School Room to try some of the of the most well-known board climbs in the world, a trip to Stoney Middleton, and an ascent of the Ron Fawcett classic, Careless Torque (f8A).