Piolet d'Or 2015

Piolet d'Or 2015 to Lindič, Prezelj and Česen for the ascent on Hagshu

Among this year's recipients of the prestigious Piolet d'Or are also Luka Lindič, Marko Prezelj and

Aleš Česen with the first ascent in the north face of Hagshu. This is already the sixth Piolet d'Or for

Slovenia in the 23-year history of awarding the most important alpinistic ascent.

The international commission announced the winners in advance for the first time this year, in addition to the ascent by Slovenian

alpinists in the Indian Himalaya, also the American ascent in Patagonia and the Russian one in the Nepalese Himalaya.

The lifetime achievement award in alpinism this year goes to British alpinist Chris Bonington,

while Marko Prezelj will become the first alpinist in the world with a third Piolet d'Or.

The Alpine Association of Slovenia's Hagshu 2014 expedition, which took place from September 6 to October 14, 2014, was

marked by bureaucratic problems, but Luka Lindič, Marko Prezelj and Aleš Česen, with a great deal of motivation and

unrelenting persistence, climbed a first ascent route in the north face of Hagshu (6657 m) in the Indian Himalaya, rating it

with the highest grade on the French six-grade scale: ED, 70°-90° III, 1350 m, 20 h + 4.5 h (first.). Up to

the Slovenian ascent of the north face, Hagshu had remained unconquered for 25 years, yet desired by numerous alpinistic expeditions; Englishman John

Barry attempted it unsuccessfully four times in this impressive wall, and simultaneously with the Slovenian expedition, legendary English alpinist Mick Fowler had bold plans for the

north face of Hagshu. "Certainly an expedition that indicates the directions

of modern alpinism, while also best capturing the unrelenting and visionary character of its members," the ascent was evaluated by

the Slovenian commission already, which named Luka Lindič the most successful alpinist of 2014 on February 25, 2015,

and awarded Marko Prezelj and Aleš Česen awards for special achievements in alpinism.

The international commission for the Piolet d'Or 2015, which selected the most outstanding alpinistic ascents of 2014, highlighted in

its explanation the 1350-meter first ascent in the north face of Hagshu, graded ED and carried out in

difficult ice conditions, due to which Lindič, Prezelj and Česen had to bivouac high in the

wall after 23 hours of ascent and reached the summit the next day, September 30, 2014, then descended via the demanding Polish Route of the first

ascent on Hagshu in 1989. This year's commission consists of nine top alpinists from around the world: Andrej Štremfelj

(Slovenia), Kazuki Amano (Japan), Valerij Babanov (Russia), Hervé Barmasse (Italy), Stéphane Benoist

(France), Andy Houseman (UK), Michael Kennedy (USA), Ines Papert (Germany) and Raphael Slawinsky

(Canada). The press liaison for the 23rd Piolet d'Or ceremony, Liv Sansoz, emphasized that the commission

independently and autonomously selected ascents that best represent modern alpinism, its spirit and values.

The 23rd Piolet d'Or ceremony will take place between April 9 and 12, 2015, in French Chamonix and Italian

Courmayeur; in addition to the Slovenian alpinists, the Piolet d'Or also goes to the American duo Tommy Caldwell and Alex

Honnold for traversing the Fitz Roy ridge in Patagonia, and Russian alpinists Aleksander Gukov and Aleksej Lončinski for the

ascent in the southwest face of Tamserku in the Nepalese Himalaya; the lifetime achievement award in alpinism goes to renowned

British alpinist Chris Bonington.

"The ascent was also media-interesting thanks to the story created by English alpinists with their previous and

last year's attempts on the mountain. This does not increase its objective value, but makes it interesting and

standout for a broader audience. Still, I hope this was not one of the reasons for awarding this prize. It must be acknowledged that there are

still quite a few ascents of similar difficulty to ours. Perhaps the commission was also attracted by the spontaneity of our

climbing, which was anything but a planned conquest of the unclimbed or unconquerable," emphasizes Aleš Česen.

"To be honest, these awards do not touch me too much at the moment. So much has been said about comparing and evaluating alpinistic

ascents that I won't waste words. It's just funny that I myself can't decide which of my two nominated ascents is better... Perhaps I'm naive, but from the Piolet d'Or I expect primarily

pleasant socializing with other climbers whom I might not otherwise meet. Actually, I'm looking forward to the event because of that.

If because of any of these recognitions I can devote myself even more to climbing, all the better," summed up his impressions

the leader of the Hagshu 2015 expedition Luka Lindič, who is currently climbing in Norway, and in February crossed the Adel peaks with Luka

Krajnc and Tadej Krišelj and ascended Cerro Torre.

Marko Prezelj will become the first alpinist in the world to receive the Piolet d'Or for the third time in a month's time. With the very first

awarded Piolet d'Or, the expert public in 1992 awarded Marko Prezelj and Andrej Štremfelj for the

first ascent up the south pillar of Kangchenjunga (8476 m) the previous year, and in 2007 Prezelj received the Piolet d'Or

together with Boris Lorenčič for climbing a new route in the pillar of Chomolhari (7326 m) in 2006. As he emphasized

back then, it is impossible to objectively evaluate someone else's ascent, so he supports the idea of the Piolet d'Or as a festival

in the sense of a climbers' gathering and not a competition in alpinism. After 23 years since receiving the first Piolet d'Or, he is still

at the top of world alpinism, but notes that alpinism is constantly changing: "Now changes in

society affect alpinism more distinctly than individual alpinists. A quarter of a century ago, uncertainty was part

of normal life, today it is a privilege that you literally have to take if you want full-fledged alpinism. All

communication and technical aids as well as modern equipment have conditioned our minds in their own way. Traveling is now

simpler. If we add to that the modern expansion of insurance, banking and law, it's really strange that

someone is excited by uncertainty and accepting one's own responsibility here and now."

In 1991, when Prezelj was climbing Kangchenjunga with Štremfelj, his current climbing partners were still

in shorts, today they climb shoulder to shoulder. "Luka in 1991 probably hadn't even crawled out of diapers, Aleš had been

getting to know alpinism since conception. Aleš and Luka are unique characters with diverse experiences.

It's exciting to share experiences with people who are spontaneous and relaxed. Physically, both are undoubtedly stronger now

than me, I perhaps contributed some organizational trick and execution idea. We worked in tune and

relaxed, despite differences in birth year. Perhaps also because of that..." Prezelj experiences the complementing of the Hagshu

2014 expedition members, top alpinist, mountain guide, photographer and leader of SMAR – the Slovenian youth alpinistic

team, who describes the core of his alpinism with these words: "I love uncertainty that goes hand in hand with

curiosity, and of course the constant making of decisions and responsibility for them. It's not always simple, but that's

the charm of it all. What we really have to strive for enriches us more strongly than instant life."

On the first extended list of 58 ascents for the Piolet d'Or 2015, besides Hagshu there were also two ascents by Slovenian

alpinists: the ascent by the Luka Krajnc and Luka Lindič pair – Grandes Jorasses, Rolling Stones, first free repeat, and the

ascent by Domna Kastelica and Sama Hennesseyja – Chugimago (6258 m), west face, first ascent route.

Slovenian alpinists have markedly shaped the history of the Piolet d'Or, having been awarded this highest

alpinistic recognition six times in 23 years of ceremonies. The first awarded Piolet d'Or went in 1992 to Marko Prezelj and

Andrej Štremfelj for the first ascent up the south pillar of Kangchenjunga (8476 m). In 1997, it went to

Tomaž Humar and Vanja Furlan for a new route in the northwest face of Ama Dablam (6812 m) in Nepal. In 2007,

Marko Prezelj received the Piolet d'Or for the second time, together with Boris Lorenčič for a new route in the

pillar of Chomolhari (7326 m); that same year, Pavle Kozjek received the audience's Piolet d'Or for the first solo

ascent of Cho Oyu and publishing a photo of the massacre of Tibetan refugees at Nangpa La pass.