Each year, the Technical Committee of the Piolets d’Or selects one recipient for the Walter Bonatti Lifetime Achievement, Piolet D'Or award in Mountaineering.
The Piolets d’Or Lifetime Achievement Award was created to recognize alpinists who have inspired multiple generations of climbers to follow in their footsteps, and whose accomplishments reflect the ideals of the event’s charter.
The award was named after Walter Bonatti, the first person to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.
This year, the recipient of the 5th Piolets d’Or Lifetime Achievement Award is Kurt Diemberger.
Kurt has a distinguished mountaineering career, that has included two First Ascents over 8000m: Broad Peak in 1957 and Dhaulagiri in 1960.
Born in 1932 in Villach, Austria, the 81-year old spent much of his youth exploring the mountains. He began his summers in the western Alps and quickly amassed an impressive list of alpine accomplishments. He climbed the Everest in spring 1978, with Pierre Mazeaud. Since the unfortunate ascent of K2 (8,611m) in 1986, in which he lost his companion and suffered severe frostbite which required amputations, he continued exploring mountains in China. His great passion for mountains and the richness of his lifetime climbing experiences are reflected in his speeches, movies and books.
The Piolets d'Or 2013 Award Ceremony takes place in Chamonix and Courmayeur from the 3 to the 6 of April.
More than just the recognition of a performance, the Piolets d'Or celebrates passion, spirit and values. The Piolets d'Or event is therefore a celebration of an ethical alpinism, rich in emotion.
To read more about the event, click here.
