Mick Fowler and Martin Price are amongst six mountain men awarded a prestigious 2012 medal from the King Albert I Memorial Foundation.
There is no 'competition' here. These medals are simply an honour bestowed on individuals and institutions, which in the opinion of the Foundation have distinguished themselves through exceptional and lasting achievements in the mountain world.
Medals are not awarded every year and since its inception in 1994 the Foundation has awarded only 48. Previously, there have only been two British recipients; Lord John Hunt in 1994 and Stephen Venables in 2004.
Other recipients in the past have been as diverse as the Swiss Alpine Museum, Bernadette MacDonald and the Banff Centre (Mountain Culture), Erhard Loretan, Harish Kapadia, Wanda Rutkiewicz (who received hers posthumously) and Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner.
At the award ceremony in Switzerland the Foundation noted that Mick Fowler is 'one of the most successful and innovative mountaineers of our time, constantly searching out and mastering difficult and beautiful lines on largely unknown peaks of up to 7,000m.'
Less known to mountaineers will be Professor Martin Price, who since 2000 has been director of the Centre for Mountain Studies in Perth, Scotland, and UNESCO chairman for Sustainable Mountain Development.
Price is also the founding editor of the International Journal of Biodiversity Science and Management, a former chairman of the Mount Everest Foundation, and founding chairman of the Royal Geographical Society's Mountain Research Group.
The Foundation noted that 'through his work with international organizations and as organizer of international mountain conferences over the last two decades, Martin Price, with his exceptional knowledge and his editorial competence, has played a vital role for the mountains of the world.'
Fowler and Price were just two of six individuals to be recognized by the Foundation in 2012. Three more were presented to Peter Bartsch (Swiss), a leading scientist in high altitude and sports medicine, Mario Broggi (Swiss), an alpine environmentalist, and Lois Hekenblaikner (Austria), a mountain photographer.
The sixth went to the French alpinist and alpine historian Sylvian Jouty.
Past editor in chief of Alpinisme and Randonnee, Jouty is best know as an author, having written numerous well received books. As the Foundation summarized, ' for the last 40 years, Sylvain Jouty has dealt intensively with all areas of the history of mountaineering and the mountains themselves, writing several fundamental works on the subject'.
Whilst a highly respected writer and historian, Jouty was also a fine alpinist in the late '60s and '70s, climbing with the top performers of the day, such as Patrick Cordier and Bernard Domenech.
With the former he made the first ascent of the classic Cordier Pillar on the Grands Charmoz, and the first ascent (in winter) of the North Face Direct of the Col de Plan.
He also took part in high profile expeditions to Afghanistan and Greenland, on the latter making the first ascent of the difficult Apostle's Thumb in the Cape Farewell region.
The Foundation commemorates King Albert I of Belgium (1875-1934), after whom Pointe Albert on the Aiguille de l'M and the Albert 1er Hut, both in the Mont Blanc Range, are named.
The King had an extensive alpine record including several first ascents. Although he began climbing with guides, he later climbed guideless, and was admitted to the Club Alpino Accedemico Italiano (CAAI), a relatively exclusive society, which only accepts those proven to led difficult alpine climbs.
Tragically, and while still reigning monarch, he died while soloing on a crag in the Ardennes near Namur in his home country.
The King Albert I Foundation also highly values freedom, and solidarity to others. It feels that in today's climate of excessive commercialism and the exploitation of the natural environment, mountaineers should do their utmost to preserve these values, not just for themselves but for humanity in general. By doing so, they might make mountaineering less of a pointless activity than often perceived by the general public.
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