The winners of the Piolets d'Or 2023 have been announced. The international jury has awarded the prestigious mountaineering prize to three ascents, including Tomorrow is Another Day, the new route by the three Swiss alpinists Hugo Béguin, Matthias Gribi and Nathan Monard on the 6100-meter-high Flat Top in the Indian Kishtwar Himalayas.
From 8 to 11 December, the coveted Piolets d'Or As in previous years, the jury from the comprehensive list of important visits Three ascents were selected and awarded for the year 2023.
First Ascent on Flat Top
Hugo Béguin, Matthias Gribi and Nathan Monard are awarded for their first ascent of Tomorrow is Another Day (1400m, ED, 5c, A2, WI4, M6) on the north face of Flat Top (6100m) and the descent via its as yet unclimbed west face.
The jury justified its choice with the elegance and technical difficulty of the route of the three young Swiss mountaineers. "The Flat Top was climbed in perfect alpine style and the mountain was crossed without incident."
Taking advantage of a four-day window of good weather, the trio set out from Advanced Base Camp on October 3. In perfect weather, they followed an obvious line down the middle of the north face, and after 600 meters they traversed right to reach the ridge. This uphill traverse, which they climbed on the second day, proved to be a key part of their route.
This was followed by technically very demanding climbing on steep terrain towards the summit. Where it was not possible to stay on the ridge, they moved to the left flank. At 7 o'clock in the evening of October 6th, they reached the summit, from where the trio descended and abseiled down the west face, which had not yet been climbed.
After a bivouac on the glacier, the next day they crossed the long ridge connected to Brammah I, abseiled down the other side and reached their advanced base camp again.
In alpine style through the north face of Jannu
The three Americans Jackson Marvell, Matt Cornell and Alan Rousseau receive the Piolets d'Or for their route Round trip ticket (2700m, M7, AI5+, AO) in the north face of Jannu (7710m) in eastern Nepal.
"This was an extraordinary climb that took high altitude technical alpine-style climbing to a new level. A combination of great teamwork, visionary strategy, technical skill and experience, together with an evolution of equipment, has led to a new chapter in the history of Himalayan climbing and will be an inspiration for future generations," said the jury.
The three American alpinists climbed from base camp through the steep and complex north face and back again in a continuous push from October 7 to 12. The hardest and steepest climbing sections were at an altitude of between 7000 and 7500 meters - the deep section of the north face that had not yet been climbed.
Posthumous honor for Hiraide and Nakajima
The two Japanese mountaineers Kazuya Hiraide and Kenro Nakajima were awarded the prize – unfortunately posthumously – for their new route Secret Line on Tirich Mir. They had an accident this summer while attempting to climb the west face of K2.
The jury acknowledged their first ascent of Tirich Mir (7708m) in Pakistan as "a great high mountain crossing". The jury members also noted that almost no prior information was available to assist in the ascent of the hidden north face. The use of a 200m fixed rope for the ascent (which was unfortunately not removed after the ascent) was considered a minor flaw compared to the overall scope of the undertaking and its successful completion.
Direct access to the huge north face of Tirich Mir is blocked by an icefall almost 1000 metres high. Using satellite imagery, the Japanese duo planned a route into the glacial basin beneath the north face, following the first section of the normal route and then over a high pass on the long northwest ridge of Tirich Mir.
On July 17, they set out from their base camp at an altitude of 4600 meters and crossed the 6200-meter pass the following day. The other side was steep and prone to rockfalls, so Kazuya Hiraide and Kenro Nakajima fixed four ropes in case of a retreat.
Climbing down and abseiling, they reached the western end of the basin, which they crossed the same day. After a night at the foot of the wall at an altitude of 5500 meters, they climbed the north face and worked their way up to their third bivouac at 6150 meters, using complex route-finding techniques. Demanding stretches of snow and ice led them to a massive wall of seracs - the greatest uncertainty factor on their route.
However, the two mountaineers managed to overcome the ice barrier on their left side the next day and thus reached the pass between Tirich Mir and Tirich West. On July 23, Hiraide and Nakajima left their camp and set out for the summit.
There were many different lines on the wide upper ridge and the pair climbed some steep sections, which they abseiled down on the way down. They mostly climbed simultaneously and reached the summit around 9.30:6300 a.m. They were back in camp by midday and continued their descent via the normal route. They abseiled down the couloir to the upper Tirich glacier and descended to XNUMX meters. They were back at base camp the next day.
Special Mention for Italian high-altitude mountaineer Nives Meroi
This year, the organizers are promoting female mountaineering by awarding the Italian Nives Meroi in the Special Mention category. Meroi, together with her husband Romano Benet and Peter Hamor from Slovakia, opened a new route on Kabru South in Nepal's Kangchenjunga region.
The Piolets d'Or aim to promote female mountaineering by awarding the "Special Mention" either to an all-women expedition, to one or more women taking a leading role in a mixed expedition, or to a single woman for significant multiple ascents over the years. In 2024, the Mention will be given to a single woman - the Italian Nives Meroi.
In 2023, probably the most notable new high altitude route involving a female alpinist was Diamonds on the Soles of the Shoes on the west face of Kabru South (7318m) in the Kangchenjunga Himal.
It was the second ascent of the southernmost 7000-meter peak in the world and the first successful ascent of one of the Kabru peaks from Nepal. After an initial exploration and a failed attempt up to 5600 meters, Peter Hámor, Bojan Jan and the couple Romano Benet and Nives Meroi climbed the wall in four days in alpine style.
That might interest you
- Alpine style through one of the most difficult north faces in the world
- Bold first ascent in alpine style on the rarely climbed Gasherbrum III
+ + +
Credits: Cover picture Hugo Béguin, Matthias Gribi and Nathan Monard