For a quarter of a century, former UIAA Youth Committee members Christian Biard and Pierre Hullin have organized a very successful and popular youth ice climbing camp in partnership with FFCAM. Originally a program for elite mountaineers in southwestern France, it has grown into the internationally recognized UIAA Youth Camp.
Over the years, young climbers from all over the world and the February 2025 edition, from the United Kingdom, Slovenia, Croatia, China, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Catalonia, Netherlands, Switzerland, Switzerland and Belgium.
Guided by an expert mountain guide and FFCAM ice climbing starter, this camp offers young adventurers a unique opportunity to develop their ice climbing skills regardless of their level of experience.
Event background
Christian Biard is a mountaineering coach, youth event director and ice school at Toulouse Alpine Club, and is a key figure in the event. Deputy Secretary-General of the Federation, a member of the Steering Committee of the Toulouse Alpine Club and the Occitanie Regional Committee, he served as chairman of the National Mountaineering Committee for eight years and is currently responsible for national-level youth schools and hope groups for mountaineering.
“Short after I started working with young people at the Toulouse Alpine Club in 1998, I organized an ice climbing course in Guillestre in 2000 to organize a teenager at the club. He recalled. “Why Guillestre? Because I have family in the area and I know the ice climbing locations very well. Two or three years later, I included ice climbing coach training, which increased the course size from about 15 to about 30 participants.”
Christian Biard, attracted by collective and intergenerational dynamics, quickly invited the mountaineering hope group he was responsible for, and then invited foreigners associated with the UIAA. “With four guides and four staff members, we have reached an unprecedented 76 people in this course this year.”
2025 edition
The 25th edition of the annual course begins on Sunday evening, February 23, with equipment distribution and general speeches. Split into six to seven groups, heading to another site every day (Aiguilles, Tour de Freissinières, Crevoux, Ceillac, Cervières, Cervières, Founel, Vautreuil, etc.), from beginners to advanced participants – was guided by coaches and mountain throughout the week. “Every night, a briefing will be held to introduce the next day’s website, topology, their difficulties and necessary methods.” Biard explained.
Thanks to the diversity of participants, communication and sharing are not only at climbing workshops, but also in daily life. “This idea is really the idea that makes everyone merge.” Biard confirmed that he was satisfied with the simple courses for practitioners and he also offered training courses every night. “Several training courses are offered: Common Activities Training Department (UFCA), Snow Avalanche 2 (NA2) training, and Ice Climbing Coach Training.” As a result, participants were able to learn and improve their skills with instructors, and aspiring coaches learned how to manage the course.
New format for 2026
Despite the success of the gathering over the past 25 years, this format will still develop from 2026. “In the past, even with a large number of places we could reach many places without disturbing the local guides, we gave absolute priorities,” Biard explained. “Now, it’s not busy that good locations are becoming increasingly rare and difficult to reach with a large crowd of people at a large waterfall.”
To ensure a pleasant and safe experience for all, while also continuing to ensure friendly and close relationships between participants, the staff decided to reduce the number of participants that began in 2026, bringing them back to about 40 people, including club teenagers, young UIAA members, and iceberg mountaineering leaders. “So we will return to the original philosophy of gatherings based on the mix of meetings and different groups.” Summary of Biard. For versatile organizers, this format change is also a way to pass a future version of the baton more easily.
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Education is a key component of all UIAA Youth Camps. As part of the program, Philippe Quintart of the UIAA Office outlines UIAA’s activities, especially in the areas of mountain protection, safety, training and ice climbing. Young people We are able to understand the importance of respecting the mountain environment and how to be responsible mountain visitors, UIAA’s work on mountain safety and the importance of UIAA’s safety labels and potential ways to become competing climbers.
The UIAA Youth Committee hopes to recognize up to ten youth camps by mid-2025. For more details on the plans and dates of these activities, please visit UIAA Website (Please note: Add more dates faster)
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