Posted: Jan 27, 2007 10:17 am EST
(MountEverest.net) Marko Prezelj and Boris Lorencic were awarded the 16th Piolet d'Or in Grenoble, France yesterday. The Slovenian climbers opened a 1950m new route in alpine style on Chomolhari's NW pillar. The Slovenians' was the first ascent on the NW edge of the 7326m Tibetan peak - first summited in 1937. Winner Prezelj often teams up with Steve House, awarded last year after a new line on Nanga Parbat's Rupal face, together with Vince Anderson.

Pavle, the public's favorite

The attending public disagreed with the jury, and chose Pavel Kozjek, also Slovenian. Pavle was nominated for a new route on Cho Oyu (8201m), opened in a solo single push which took less than 15 hours. Pavle was also the first person to submit images of the Tibetan pilgrims shot at Nangpa La by Chinese border guards. His feat was awarded Best of ExplorersWeb last year.

East and West continental divide

The prestigious golden ice axe has endured much controversy in the past few years. In 2005, American Steve House criticized the prize for going to Russian Jannu North face climbers. Steve got the prize the next year, awarded by new jury members, including alpine style purist Briton Stephen Venables.

Finalist in both 2005 and 2006 for amazing new routes on difficult eightthousanders in alpine style Kazakh Denis Urubko has commented: "I'm happy that I climb for the sport only." The Asian jury awarded Denis together with his climbing partner Sergey Samoilov for the Asian version of the prize last year.

A jury without GHM

Also last year, the mixed team of Cerro Torre rebels Ermanno Salvaterro, Alessandro Beltrami and US resident Rolando Garibotti asked for their nomination to be withdrawn, stating that Piolet d’Or is a subjective award pitting climbers against each other.

And only weeks back, co-founder Group d'Haute Montagne (French High Mountain Group) left the award. The GHM climbers had represented the body of reference and moral caution of the prize, while Montagnes Magazine was in charge of communication and event organization.

”After several years of co-management, the last ones with increasing relational dificulties, the GHM realized that...the necessary respect and confidence needed for the award of the Piolet d'Or are now impossible with Montagnes,” wrote GHM, adding, “GHM strongly wishes to promote alpinism and its realizations but not if it means blending styles and games.”

The question now is what's up with the prize. This year's nominees shouldn’t have been controversial - all running for the prize with alpine-style ascents. It is yet to be seen whether the award will keep its prestige without the support of the French high altitude climbers. With only Montagnes magazine, the Piolet d’or could end up just another award issued by specialized media.

Jury members this year (each with one vote) were: Americans Steve House and Vince Anderson, latest award-winners for a new route on Nanga Parbat's Rupal face; Italian Vinicio Stefanello, journalist with PlanetMountain.com; Montagnes magazine staff; Korean Im Duck Yong, journalist and founder of the Asian edition of Piolet d'Or; Swiss Michel Piola, Piolet d'Or in 1992 for a new route on Torres del Paine; French Christian Trommsdorff, nominated last year for a traverse on Chomo Lonzo; and Russian Yuri Koshelenko, awarded in 2003 for the opening of Nuptse East's south pillar with Valery Babanov.

Other nominees for the award were:

Kazakh Denis Urubko and Sergey Samoilov (for the second year), for the new route opened in alpine style on Manaslu’s NE face.

Ukrainians Igor Chaplinsky, Andrey Rodiontsev and Orest Verbitsky for a first ascent on the north ridge of Shingu Charpa, a 5600m Karakorum spire located in Masherbrum massif.

Brits Ian Parnell and Tim Emmett, who climbed the SE Pillar of Kedarnath Dome (Kedar Dome), in India's Gangotri region.


More on the awarded climb: Courting the bride of Kangchenjunga

Marko Prezelj led a Slovenian team whose main goal was to open a new route on Chomolhari, also known as the Bride of Kangchenjunga, located on the Tibet-Bhutan border.

The Slovenians acclimatized at Jangmo Gopsha peak (6706m), and then went for Chomolhari (about 7350m), divided in two groups, each on a different route.

Rok Blagus, Tine Cuder, Samo Krmelj and Matej Kladnik climbed up a couloir on the north face. After a bivouac at 6800m they reached the east ridge, which they followed to the summit, on October 14. Difficulty degree has been set as TD+, 80/45-60, for the 1900m-long line.

Meanwhile Prezelj and Boris Lorencic attempted a new route on the NW ridge, in pretty bad weather conditions. “We climbed the couloir and then traversed to the right onto a mixed buttress and up to the crest of NW Ridge," Marko wouls report later. "In the couloir we found knee deep snow and steep sections of hard snow and ice. The wind was strong, mixed with hard snow crystals and the climbing was serious up to M6+.”

Thin ice added difficulties to the mixed sections, which the climbers needed five days to overcome. After reaching the summit, they hoped to descend via the south ridge. Bad conditions however forced Marko and Boris to climb down the ascent route, which included another bivouac on the wall.

“In general it was a serious climb where logistics and choice of tactics were probably more important than just ‘difficult moves of the body’,” added Marko. “I led the entire climb and we graded the route ED2, M6+/30-70, c1950 m.”

Slovenian Marko Prezelj is an accomplished alpine-style climber who has opened dozens of difficult routes all over America and Asia. Prezelj was also part of the K7-Charakusa-Nanga Parbat multi-header expedition led by American Steve House in 2004.

Chomolhari is sacred to Tibetan Buddhists, and every year pilgrims assemble in the town of Phari Dsong, ten miles away, to walk in procession to the mountain. Its north face is a sheer 9,000-foot wall.The first ascent was made in 1937 by Spenser Chapman and Dawa Lama. Depending source, its altitude varies between 7314m - 7350m.

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