In 1992, Nicole solved La Danse des Balrogs, in Branson, Switzerland, which is considered the first-ever 8B (V13) in bouldering history.[2][3][4] In 1996, he solved Radja, also in Branson, which is also now considered the first-ever 8B+ (V14) graded boulder in history.[2][3][4]
In 2002, he solved Monkey Wedding and Black Eagle SDS in Rocklands, South Africa, which is now considered to be the first-ever 8C (V15) graded boulder in history.[2][3][4] In 2000, Nicole solved Dreamtime in Cresciano in Switzerland, which at the time was considered the first-ever 8C (V15) boulder in history, but its consensus grade was subsequently softened;[3][4] the beauty and challenge of Dreamtime have maintained its status as an important route in bouldering history.[2][5]
Nicole has also made important first ascents in sport climbing. In 1988, he redpointed the second-ever8c (5.14b) in history with Anaïs et le canabis in Saint-Loup in Switzerland. In 1993, he redpointed the third-ever9a (5.14d) in history with Bain de Sang [fr], also in Saint-Loup in Switzerland.[3][4][6]