Arco Rock Master 2010

The Arco Rock Master is and always will be one of the most prestigious climbing events and next year it will be the venue of the World Climbing Championships.

(Jack Geldard)

I battled through the nearly unbearable heat and finished in 12th. The legendary Rock Master was still a mega success with a massive crowd, a good atmosphere and good pizza, it was just a shame that it was held over the hottest weekend ever recorded in Arco.

(Elias Holzknecht)

Boulder Worldcup Sheffield (UK)

Sheffield held the latest round of the 2010 Bouldering Worldcup at the successful Cliff Hanger event.

The competition was a mega success with perfect weather and a massive crowd creating one of the best atmospheres of the season. The competition was very successful for the British Bouldering Team where 7 team members were able to climb in the semi-final and ranked 2nd in the team rankings.

However, it was the first event of the season where I felt really nervous before climbed so I had to really concentrate and stay focused. I finished 13th but feel slightly disappointed with my performance in the semi-final.

(Heiko Wilhelm)

Next event is the Arco Rockmaster!

Boulder Worldcup Eindhoven (NL)

The 2010 Bouldering Worldcup's next stop was in Eindhoven (NL). The event was a real highlight of the running season with good music, interesting blocs and a loud crowd.


I was very pleased to be able to climb in the semi-final again along with Dave Barrans. Dave put in a good performance and qualified for the final. I had some bad luck on the first semi-final bloc when on my flash attempt my foot went out-of-bounds meaning I had to jump off and climb the bloc again costing me one attempt more and a place in the final. Very disappointing but it was my own fault for not concentrating enough. I finished in 7th place and Dave 5th.

We now have a few days rest before the next round of the Worldcup in Sheffield at the Cliffhanger event.

(Heiko Wilhelm)

Boulder Worldcup Vail (USA)

The third round of the 2010 Bouldering Worldcup was held in Vail, Colorado. We flew out to Denver on Sunday after the competition in Vienna and made our way to Boulder in two massive jeeps. After a few days of relaxing in Boulder it was time to compete. I managed to qualify in 5th place on Friday and in the semi-final I climbed the first two blocs and had a few good goes at the 3rd leaving me in 10th. I really enjoyed climbing infront of an American crowd, they really get behind the climbers and the energy is 'awesome'. The final was fantastic to watch with Daniel Woods pulling it out the bag to show an unbelievable amount of power.

The Austrian Team had some bad luck, Kili stubbed his toe the night before the Quali leaving him struggling to weight his right foot, he still finished 3rd though (incredible). Johanna was climbing so well during the quali when disater struck on the final bloc with a massive inversion injury rupturing all three ligaments in her ankle. Johanna has now got to decide whether surgical or conservative intervention is best.

(Heiko Wilhelm)

Boulder Worldcup Vienna (AUT)

The bouldering World Cup in Vienna was very successful. I was able to climb in my first World Cup final and finished in 4th behind Fishhuber, Ondra and Rubtsov. Climbing in the final was an unforgettable experience, particularly on the third boulder where you had to perform a footless cross-over on small screw-ons...the crowd went wild.

Dave Barrans climbed very well finishing in 8th.





I am now in Boulder, Colorado, relaxing before heading up to Vail at the Weekend for the next round of the World Cup.

(Heiko Wilhelm)

Boulder Worldcup Greifensee (SUI)

The 15th of May saw the start of the 2010 Bouldering Worldcup in Greifensee, Switzerland. The qualification round went well and I made it through to the semi-final finishing in 10th place. A real highlight of the event was watching the battle between Ondra and Fischhuber. Kilian demonstrating mega composure and winning the event.

Members of the 2010British bouldering Team climbed well with Mina and Diane finishing 25th and 27th respectively. John, Adam and Mason gained critical experience ready for the next event. The team will be flying out to Vienna next weekend where Barrans climbed very well last year making it through to the finals.

You can follow the British Team's performance at the BMC or the IFSC's website:

http://www.thebmc.co.uk
http://www.ifsc-climbing.org/?page_name=home

Wilhelm and British Bouldering Team

Der Schwarzer Schwan

After Viktor and Tanja's wedding on Saturday we decided to head to Markus Haid's new climbing spot where he'd made the first ascent of an incredible route. 'Der Schwarzer Schwan' ≈Fr8c winds its way up a blank wall of pristine granite before a bouldery top out. We warmed up in a nearby area and headed up to the secret spot with Markus. The route reminds me of 'new baseline' at Averstal and I thought I might be able to do it in a day. I had a good flash attempt and on my 2nd attempt I made the 2nd ascent. The route is destined to be a mega classic in Tirol.