Here in Australia we have a similar problem. The local climbers had no international input for quite a few years and the "official" hardest climbs were around g

Here in Australia we have a similar problem. The local climbers had no international input for quite a few years and the "official" hardest climbs were around grade 21 (on the Ewbank system). Some of those 21s (5.10-ish) have now been upgraded to the high twenties (5.12d - 5.13c-ish). It was really the visit from Henry Barber in 1975 that introduced chalk, and a more gymnastic style, that allowed local climbers to realize that some of the more recent "21s" were actually a lot harder. This visit was a perfect example of why it's important to have global communication and cross-pollination within any niche interest. It accelerates progress immensely. This is why we go to trade-shows and meetups :-)