Steel Angel Award 2025 nominees and Jury panel

2025 NOMINEES

First ascent of the unclimbed El Cohete (Turbio IV Valley, Patagonia), Apollo 13 route

Fay Manners (UK), Caro North (Switzerland), Julia Cassou (France), Belén Prados and Rocío Rodríguez Guiñazú (Argentina)

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Yellow Wall (3700m, Karavshin, Kyrgyzstan), Sourire Kirghize route (Sylvain di Giacomo и Frédéric Gentet, 2014)

Galya Terentyeva, Darya Serupova (Russia)

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First ascent of the Point Walkers (5300m, Garhwal Himalayas), Bhalu and a Biscuit route

Lise Billon, Sophie Jacob, Isis Millerioux, Mathilde Badoual, Maud Vanpoulle (France)

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First ascent of the Iris Peak (5200 m, Miyar Valley, Himachal Pradesh, India) Karma route

Olga Paducheva, Oksana Kochubey, Nadezhda Pilshchikova and Nadezhda Muzhikina (Russia)

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Steel Angel Award 2025 Jury panel

Liana Darenskaya
(Russia)

Co-founder of the Steel Angel award. Founder and Editor of “RISK On-site” magazine and the website Risk.ru. A journalist, photographer, and a participant of international exhibitions, published in National Geographic Traveller. Provided media coverage of international outdoor events such as festivals, competitions, marathons, exhibitions, and actively participated in these events as a member of the official press group.

Jordi Corominas (Spain)

Professional IFMGA mountain guide. In 2024, he was awarded the 16th Walter Bonatti — Piolets d’Or Lifetime Achievement Award. Jordi has made significant contribution to multiple areas of mountaineering, from his high-standard personal ascents in pure style, his long career as a professional guide [more than 30 years of guiding in the Alps], his role as director of the Spanish National Mountaineering Team from 2002 — 2010, to the training of new guides.

Yannick Graziani (France)

Mountain guide, a member of the Chamonix Guides Company since 2000. He was awarded the Cristal de la FFME (1997) and received a Piolets d’Or Special Mention (2014). Yannick Graziani is one of France’s most accomplished Himalayan climbers. His notable ascents include first climbs on Makalu (8,481 m) via the Southeast Ridge and East Face, Annapurna IV (7,525 m), Chomo Lonzo (7,804 m), Nemjung (7,140 m), Chaukhamba II (7,070 m), Pumori Khish (7,350 m), Lobuche (6,100 m) via the West Face, and Kusum Kanguru (6,370 m) via the North Face.

Mikel Zabalza (Spain)

IFMGA/UIAGM mountain guide, director of the Spanish Alpine Team. At the age of 22, he completed his first ascent of a 7,000-meter peak in alpine style, opening a new route on Lemphu Gang (7,083 m) in the Langtang Valley, Nepal. Since his first expedition to the Himalayas in 1992 and his first ascent of the Northeast Face of Trango Tower in 1995, to the free ascent of Divine Providence, one of the emblematic routes of the Mont Blanc massif, Mikel has continuously pushed his limits. In 2023, he made the first ascent of Phurbi Txiki (6,140 m) in the Jugal Himal range on the Nepal–Tibet border. He has served several times as a jury member of the Piolet d’Or (2022, 2024, 2025).

Valery Babanov
(Russia/France)

Professional IFMGA mountain guide. Piolets d’Or award winner (2002, 2004), laureate of international awards “Silver Genziana” (Italy, 2002, 2008), “Explorer” (Poland, 2004), “Golden Hook” (USA, 2008), “Crystal vase” (Czech Republic, 2008). Has been twice on the jury panel of Piolets d’Or (2003, 2005). He has made more than 600 ascents, more than 300 of them were of the 5th-6th category in a team and in twos. Climbed six peaks exceeding 8000 meters, five of them were climbed without using additional, artificial oxygen. Among the notable ones: ascents of Broad Peak (8047 meters) and Gasherbrum 1 (8068 meters), new routes and in alpine style. He also climbed about 45 long routes of the highest category of difficulty in the Pamir Mountains, Tien Shan and abroad (Alps, Yosemite, Alaska, Himalayas) in summer and winter conditions in solo style. Some of them were first ascents.

Sonia Casas Torcida
(Spain)

She was the first Spanish women to receive the professional guide qualification TDII Alta Montaña (AEGM). Passionate of mountains, she considers them as a sacred temple. As an alpinist and rock climber she knows well all the Spanish hotspots, as well as in the Alps, Turkey, Morocco and Patagonia. Regarding high altitude ascents, she counts with several 6000, 7000 summits in alpine style in Nepal, Kazakstan, Kyrgysztan, Pamir-China and Cordillera Blanca-Peru. Optimistic and enthusiastic, she knows how to pass on what motivates her, enjoying the moment to the full and the simple things that sometimes others miss.

Michael Levy
(USA)

Editor and publisher of Summit Journal, which is a re-launch of Summit, one of the original US climbing magazines. The new Summit Journal is one of the most beautiful and interesting magazines ever produced. He has worked on the American Alpine Journal (AAJ) for several years and is one of top editors AAJ. He was formerly a senior editor at Rock and Ice, Climbing, and Ascent magazines. His work has appeared in The New York Times, Outside, Men’s Journal, Sierra, Sidetracked, and Mountain Gazette, among other publications. He has climbed all over the world, from the big walls of Yosemite to the limestone cliffs of Southeast Asia; from the peaks in the Alaska Range to those in the Cordillera Blanca.

Silvio Mondinelli (Italy)

Himalayan climbers. In 2007, he became the 13th person to climb all 14 eight-thousanders and the sixth to accomplish this feat without the use of supplemental oxygen. Silvio was also the first mountaineer to have climbed both the Seven Summits and all 14 eight-thousanders.
Throughout his expeditions, Mondinelli has rescued other climbers, often at the cost of his own summit attempts. He is one of the founders of the High Mountain University in Alagna Valsesia, as well as the charity Amici del Monterosa (“Friends of Monte Rosa”), which built a hospital in Kathmandu.
His remarkable climbs and numerous rescue missions around the world have earned him the nickname “The Mountain Machine” and widespread international recognition

Steel Angel Award 2025. Longlist

1. Fay Manners (UK), Caro North (Switzerland), Julia Cassou (France), Belén Prados and Rocío Rodríguez Guiñazú (Argentina)
First ascent of the El Cohete (Turbio IV Valley, Patagonia), “Apollo 13” route, 1250m: 13 pitches / 600m 7b + 650m AD 4a

steel-angel.ru/en/apollo-13-the-first-all-female-ascent

2. Laura Pineau, Kate Kelleghan
Triple Crown of Yosemite — the South Face of Mt. Watkins (667m, 18 pitches, 5.11+ A2), the Nose rout of El Capitan (870m, 31 pitches, 5.13c or 5.9 A2), the Regular Northwest Face rout of Half Dome (667m, 23 pitches, 5.12 or 5.9 A1) — in 23 hours and 36 minutes

3. Sasha DiGiulian and Marianna Ordóñez
First female free ascent of the Bravo Les Filles route (climbed by Lynn Hill and company) 600 m, 5.13d) on the Tsaranoro Kelly (600 m, Madagascar)

www.climbing.com/news/sasha-digiulian-and-marianna-ordonez-pick-up-where-lynn-hill-left-off-in-madagascar/

4. Galya Terentyeva, Darya Serupova (Russia)
Yellow Wall (3700m, Karavshin, Kyrgyzstan, Pamir Alai), Sourire Kirghize route (Sylvain di Giacomo и Frédéric Gentet, 2014), 600m, 13 pitches,

https://steel-angel.ru/en/svobodnoe-lazanie-v-karavshine-seriya-zhenskih-voshozhdeniy?authorized=true

5. Galya Terentyeva, Darya Serupova (Russia)
Little Asan (3,900 m), route West Face Corner and Crack, 400 m, 10 pitches, 6b+.

6. Galya Terentyeva, Darya Serupova (Russia)
Yellow Wall (3700m, Karavshin, Kyrgyzstan, Pamir Alai), Prokofieva rout, 5A RUS

7. Galya Terentyeva, Darya Serupova (Russia)
Asan (4200 m, Karavshin, Kyrgyzstan, Pamir Alai) Alperina route, 950 м, 6c+, 5B RUS

8. Inna Kravchenko, Irina Vasilyeva and Tanya Shchekinova (Russia)
Asan (4200 m, Karavshin, Kyrgyzstan, Pamir Alai) Pogorelova route, (900 м, 6А RUS)

steel-angel.ru/en/karavshin-gde-mechty-sbyvayutsya

9. Inna Kravchenko, Irina Vasilyeva and Tanya Shchekinova (Russia)
Asan (4200 m, Karavshin, Kyrgyzstan, Pamir Alai) Gorbenko route, 5B RUS

10. Olga Paducheva, Oksana Kochubey, Nadezhda Pilshchikova and Nadezhda Muzhikina (Russia)
First ascent of the Iris Peak (5200 m, Miyar Valley, Himachal Pradesh, India)
Karma route, 1,100 m: 650 m 6c, ED + 550 m PD/AD

steel-angel.ru/en/first-ascent-iris-peak-miyar-valley-himachal-pradesh-russian-all-female-team

11. Olga Vasilenko, Daria Ivanova, Darja Pustozjerova
Cey-Loam (Ingushetia), 5A RUS

12. Fay Manners
First solo traverse of the Asha (5,400 m), Garhwal Himalaya, India

steel-angel.ru/en/fey-manners-two-solo-traverses-indian-himalayas

13. Lise Billon, Sophie Jacob, Isis Millerioux, Mathilde Badoual, Maud Vanpoulle (France)
First ascent of the Point Walkers (5300m, Garhwal Himalayas) by East ridge, Bhalu and a Biscuit route, 250m, 6a, 5.10b, TD+/ED

steel-angel.ru/en/nominee-2025-bhalu-and-a-biscuit-point-walkers-satling-glacier-talay-sagar-garhwal-himalaya