Ice climbing wall open at Lillehammer 2016

IOC President Thomas Bach was among the guests to visit the ice climbing wall during the opening weekend of the 2016 Youth Winter Olympic Games in Lillehammer. Main image: IOC President Thomas Bach visits the ice climbing demonstration at Lillehammer 2016 (Photo: UIAA) Ice climbing is one of the sports to feature at the 2nd edition of the competition as part of the LYOGOC (Lillehammer Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee)’s Sjoggfest (snow festival). The Sjoggfest programme is designed to...

John Ellison, a true inspiration

The UIAA is saddened to hear about the death of inspirational British climber John Ellison. John passed away on 27 December after a four-year battle with an incurable cancer. Following his diagnosis in 2012, John founded and spearheaded Climbers Against Cancer (CAC), raising hundreds of thousands of pounds for research in the continued fight against a disease that affects so many. The CAC logo has become an instantly recognisable emblem when encountering climbers wearing CAC t-shirts and...

Roping up at COP21

During International Mountain Day on Friday 11 December, the UIAA organised an initiative from its Call from the Mountains booth at COP21. Roping up at COP21 for International Mountain Day As part of its commitment to climate change, the UIAA was present in Paris for COP21, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. On International Mountain Day, the UIAA welcomed leaders, representatives from national and international NGOs, journalists, politicians and all citizens in attendance at the...

Total Domination

That was impressive. Two athletes have laid down a marker following the first World Cup round of the 2016 UIAA Ice Climbing World Tour supported by The North Face Korea. In the highly-anticipated season opener in Bozeman, Montana, Russian athletes Maxim Tomilov and Maria Tolokonina earned the plaudits claiming gold medals in both Friday’s speed and Saturday’s lead competition. Dominating one competition is impressive enough, prevailing in both is an almost unprecedented achievement. 59 athletes from 12 countries...

Celebrating International Mountain Day

The annual International Mountain Day will be held today, Friday 11 December, with the mountain community throughout the world engaged in initiatives to celebrate and raise awareness about mountain life. The theme proposed this year is ‘Promoting mountain products for better livelihoods’ with details provided at the following link. As part of its commitment to climate change, the UIAA is currently present in Paris at COP21, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. On International Mountain...

Douglas Tompkins 1943-2015

The UIAA is saddened to hear about the passing of Douglas Tompkins, a legendary and inspirational figure in the climbing and mountaineering world. Douglas, co-founder of The North Face, was truly passionate about nature and dedicated much of his life to conservation. He was the driving force behind numerous environmental protection and biodiversity programmes and projects aimed at raising public awareness about environmental issues and those which helped foster a greater  appreciation of nature. His legacy...

UIAA Statement regarding Proposed Restrictions on Mount Everest

The UIAA fully supports the decision by Nepalese authorities to propose more stringent measures for climbers wishing to scale the world’s highest peak, Mount Everest (29,029ft / 8,848m). These measures will include individuals having to prove they have already scaled a peak in excess of 6,500m, eliminating the possibility of novice climbers scaling the mountain. "Everest should become a mountaineers’ mountain again,” explains UIAA President Frits Vrijlandt. "We support the requirement restrictions on age (denying access to those...

New Download: UIAA Warning About Climbing Anchor Failures

The UIAA Safety Commission has produced an extensive document charting the factors behind the recent incidents of unexpected climbing anchor failures, notably those under low loads and sometimes after only some months/years in place. The effects of Stress Corrosion Cracking (SCC) Stress corrosion cracking (SCC) has been confirmed as the cause of a number of recent climbing anchor (bolt) failures and is further suspected in many more incidents. Such SCC induced failures may occur within a few...

2015 UIAA Mountain Protection Award Winner

Nepal-based project KTK-BELT (in full ‘Koshi Tappu Kanchenjunga Biodiversity Education Livelihood Tera Studio') has been confirmed as the third winner of the UIAA Mountain Protection Award (MPA). Created in 2013 as a response to forest loss, habitat decrease and a drop in biodiversity, KTK-BELT is a platform for farmers, teachers, designers and environmentalists working together to build community-based biodiversity conservation strategies in the eastern region of Nepal. KTK-BELT was chosen from an impressive list of 22 inspirational...

2015 UIAA General Assembly: A Review

(Seoul, South Korea - 23 October) The UIAA confirms changes to its Statute – the updated version will be available soon; announces a partnership with the International Skyrunning Federation (ISF); presents details of its – and the Nepal Mountaineering Association’s – support to the WFP programme; while KTK-BELT Studio is presented with the Mountain Protection Award for 2015 and Climate Change agreement ratified. 2015 UIAA General Assembly, Seoul (South Korea)  A gathering of UIAA officials, member federations and delegates met...