French climber Loïc Zehani has made the first ascent of Mossoul, 9b/+, at Orgon, France.

The route is the 21-year-old's hardest to date, having made repeats up to 9a+, and having climbed four 9b's, all of which were first ascents. To our knowledge, none of Zehani's 9b routes have been repeated.

Zehani, who climbed his first 9a at just 14 years old, described the route as a 'big overhang with four sections of bouldering without rest', coming to 'around thirty movements in total' on 'pockets, verticals, underclings, [and] crimps'.

Almost all of Zehani's hardest routes are at Orgon, a crag that was originally the home of some of the hardest climbing in the world. Whilst the area is no longer as strongly associated with climbing at the very top end, Zehani's ascents may go some way to restablishing Orgon as a venue for those seeking out routes at the very top end.