Ice Climbing: Team France

Episode 8 of Mountain Voices focuses on competition ice climbing following the organisation of the 2024-2025 UIAA Ice Climbing World Tour. The sport is at a crucial juncture – the 2024-2025 season was the biggest in a number of year in terms of the number of events and participating athletes and national federations. In late 2024, the UIAA created World Ice Climbing, a dedicated Operating Unit focused on overseeing the development and organsiation of the sport. Furthermore, with the 2030 Olympic Winter Games being held in the French Alps, the prospect of ice climbing becoming an official Olympic sport is in the spotlight.

Part 1 (00:00 - 29:50)

An exclusive interview with the Ladevant brothers – Tristan and Louna, two of the most successful climbers on the World Tour. The discuss their journey into ice climbing, their sibling rivalry and the support they provide each other and their hopes for the future.

Part 2 (29:51 - 38:20)

Rob Adie, UIAA Competition Manager, and Etienne Grillot, World Ice Climbing Board, discuss the road map for ice climbing to follow in order for it to be considered as a future Olympic Winter Games competition sport.

Part 3 (39:49- 49:01)

Annabelle Bouchardon, former World Tour ice climber, explains how competition ice climbing can form a pathway into a career in mountaineering and how the skills learnt on the competition walls can translate to the high mountains.

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Mountain Voices is a podcast from the UIAA. Throughout each series, the UIAA explores different climbing and mountaineering topics. The series provide a platform for both experts from the UIAA and renowned figures from the mountain world to share their views and opinions. Each series is made of up of six episodes. Season 2 launched in March 2025.

https://www.theuiaa.org/mountainvoices/

Presented and produced by Tarquin Cooper

Co-produced by Peter Bourne

Edited by Tom Tushaw

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