Press releases

05 Jan 2009

2008 ICE MASTER WORLD CUP NEWS

A taller and more spectacular structure, more difficult routes: the news of 2008 Ice Master World Cup

In the Daone Valley the volunteers are patiently working on the new competition stucture, while the organizing team of the Ice Climbing World Cup (in Trentino, the only stage in Italy) is collecting the first registrations. The World strongest athletes (including Russian, Korean, Belgians and Dutchmen) have already submitted their registrations, the Italians, Swiss and Austrians "spiders" will soon follow.
The cold temperature, which is ideal for the working of ice, and the technical innovations introduced by Maurizio Gallo, who is in charge of the competition structure, make us lokk forward to a very interesting and spectacular edition of the Ice Master. Just like last year's edition, the men's competition (difficulty) will go on for three days: on Friday all the athletes will climb the two routes of the first qualifying round, and only the first sixteen of them will gain access to the semifinals on Saturday, followed by the eight champions who will compete for the final success on Sunday.  The women will start on Saturday.

«This year the structure will be taller than the one used in the recent past - says Maurizio Gallo - and it will be more complicated and difficult to climb. The improving ability of the athletes and the evolution of the equipment force us to study more difficult itineraries. That is the reason why we have decided to build this new structure which is 26 m tall. The best way to test the technical and physical ability of the athlete is to increase the lenght of the tracks and modifying them. Last year each climber had to face three routes (about 5 minutes long) each day, while this time they will find two longer and harder tracks, whose time will be 9 minutes long (with a 9 minutes break between the first and the second climb)». This will also help the public to concentrate on two athletes at a time and to watch exciting technical and physical performances . The winners of the 2007 edition, Markus Bendler from Austria and Jenny Lavarda from Vicenza, will try to keep their crowns. But It sure will not be easy for them, because every year there are many new tough climbers, also from new countries. Think about the fact that only one athlete has been able to win this competition two times in a row, the amazing Harald Berger, winner in 2005 and in 2006, victim of a fatal accident while he was training at home one year ago.
As in the tradition of this manifestation, for which the organizing commitee works for a whole year, the athletes' competition will be together with the climbings of those who want to learn or improve their techniques on icefalls. From 18th to 27th January, the tenth edition of La Sportiva International Ice Meeting will take place in the Daone Valley in the heart of the Adamello Brenta Natural Park, with the collaboration of the "Friends of Arco" Alpine Guides. Everybody can take part in this entertaining discipline, beginners included.

Riccardo Milani