58 ascents carried out in 2018 have been included in the Big list, from which winners will be selected for the Piolets d’Or , the prestigious mountaineering award that will be celebrated from 19 - 22 September 2019 during the Ladek Mountain Festival in Poland. The jury is comprised of: Sandy Allan, Kazu Amano, Valeri Babanov, Jordi Corominas, Fred Degoulet, Ines Papert, Andrej Štremfelj.
Polish climbers Jacek Matuszek & Łukasz Dudek have made the first ascent of Premiere, a big new rock climb up the North Face of Cima Grande in the Tre Cime di Lavaredo group of the Dolomites, Italy.
Simon Gietl and Vittorio Messini have made the first ascent of Alles im Kasten, a five-pitch climb up Mittlere Kasten close to Klas in the Hoher Tauern massif in Austria.
On 26 January 2019 Italian mountaineers Simon Gietl and Mark Oberlechner made the first ascent of Kalipe, a difficult new ice and mixed climb up the North Face of Peitlerkofel / Sass de Putia in the Dolomites.
South Tyrolean alpinists Simon Gietl and Patrick Seiwald have made the first ascent of Räuber Hotzenplotz (M9 Wi5). This mixed climb is located to the left of the famous Koflerbach icefall close to Sand in Taufers in the South Tyrol, Italy.
On 16 December 2018 Simon Gietl and Mark Oberlechner made the first ascent of Utopia, a new mixed climb close to Rein in Taufers in Italy.
Austrian mountain guides Matthias Wurzer and Peter Wurzer have established Russisches Roulette, Russian roulette, a difficult and dangerous mixed climb up the northeast face of Kristallwand (Venediger Group, Hohe Tauern, Austria).
The short film by Paolo Sartori documenting the repeat of Odyssee on the North Face of the Eiger by Barbara Zangerl and Jacopo Larcher in August 2018
Interview with Simon Gietl after his ascent free solo ascent of Via Lacedelli up Cima Scotoni in the Dolomites on 18 October 2018.
Simon Gietl and Vittorio Messini have made the first ascent of Sintflut, Deluge, a new ice and mixed climb up the north face of Mount Prijakt in Austria. Messini reports.
Swiss alpinist Roger Schaeli has made the first ascent of Airplane Mode up the North Face of the Eiger.
The South Tyrolean mountaineer Simon Gietl has made the first ascent, rope solo, of Can you hear me? up Cima Scotoni in the Italian Dolomites). The new climb has been dedicated to Gerhard Fiegl.
Climbing ground-up and in a single push, Barbara Zangerl and Jacopo Larcher have repeated Odyssee, the difficult alpine outing up the Eiger completed in 2015 by Roger Schaeli, Robert Jasper and Simon Gietl.
Over a four-day period in August 2016 Simon Gietl and Andrea Oberbacher made the first ascent, ground-up, of Stigmata, a multi-pitch rock climb up Heiligkreuzkofel / Sass de la Crusc in the Dolomites freed by the duo on 17/07/2017 with difficulties up to X-.
The 5th Karl Unterkircher Award was awarded on 14 July 2018 in Selva di Val Gardena, Italy to Simone Moro who, together with Ali Sadpara and Alex Txikon, carried out the first winter ascent of Nanga Parbat in February 2016. The other climbers that had been nominated Ines Papert and Luka Lindič for their new route on Kyzyl Asker in Kyrgyzstan (China), and Simon Gietl and Marcel Schenk for the new mixed climb up Pizzo Badile in Switzerland.
The trailer of Simon Gietl and Vittorio Messini and their enchainment of Mt. Ortler, Cima Piccola di Lavaredo and Grossglockner in Austria in just 47 hours and 16 minutes.
In a mere 47 hours and 16 minutes the alpinists Simon Gietl and Vittorio Messini climbed the north face of Ortler, Cima Piccola di Lavaredo and the North Face of Grossglockner in Austria. The alpinists traveled from one mountain to the other on foot and by bicycle.
On July 14, 2018 Selva di Val Gardena will host the fifth edition of the Karl Unterkircher Award in memory of the South Tyrolean alpinist who died ten years ago on Nanga Parbat. The alpinists nominated for the 2018 award are Simone Moro, Ali Sadpara and Alex Txikon for the first winter ascent of Nanga Parbat, Ines Papert and Luka Lindič for their new route up Kyzyl Asker in Kyrgyzstan (China), and Simon Gietl and Marcel Schenk for the new mixed climb up Pizzo Badile in Switzerland. Special guest: Kurt Diemberger
The trailer of the new multi-pitch rock climb Stigmata on Heiligkreuzkofel / Sass de la Crusc in the Italian Dolomites, freed in summer of 2017 by Simon Gietl and Andrea Oberbacher.
Simon Gietl, Thomas Huber and Rainer Treppte have made what is likely to be the first repeat of La Strada, the route up Cima Grande di Lavaredo, Dolomites first ascended by Polish climbers Piotr Edelman and Jan Fijalkowski on 6 and 7 August 1980.
