The UIAA and World Ice Climbing have published the provisional calendar for the 2026-2027 UIAA Ice Climbing World Tour, supported by Fixe.
Headline features include: the hosting of the biennial World Championships in one of ice climbing’s most enchanting destinations – Champagny-en-Vanoise in the French Alps; the staging of four World Cups on three continents including a new location; the World Youth Championships in Edmonton, Canada; an abridged Continental season with three European events organised primarily to prepare athletes for the world level events.
Cheongsong will host the first World Cup from 15-17 January, 2027. The South Korean venue has been a staple of the World Tour for over 15 years. The Korean Alpine Federation (KAF) support the hosting of a first-class programme. A week later, from 21-23 January, Saas-Fee in the Swiss Alps will continue its impressive 20+ years of organising UIAA-sanctioned competitions. Partnered by the Swiss Alpine Club (SAC), the local organisers always succeed in delivering an enthralling competition and drawing in large numbers of spectators. Please note this event is yet to be confirmed. Confirmation is expected by 1 September at the latest.
Athletes will remain in the Alps the following weekend, 29-31 January, for the biennial World Championships. The natural ice tower in Champagny-en-Vanoise is one of the most impressive in the world, offering technical routes and stunning scenery in equal measure. The event is organised by Fédération Française des clubs alpins et de montagne (FFCAM). The title of world champion is the most prestigious in competition ice climbing. The current holders are: Woonseon Shin and Lee Young-geon of South Korea in difficulty and Mohammad Reza Safdarian of Iran and Aneta Loužecká, Czechia, in speed.
Once the world titles are decided, the focus will turn to the close of the World Cup season. For the first time, and supported by the Alpine Club of Canada (ACC), Canada will host two events. Both competitions will be held in downtown venues in Alberta. From 19-21 February, Calgary will host its first ever UIAA ice climbing event before Edmonton, 25-27 February, has the honour of closing the season and crowning the World Tour winners, the highest-ranked athletes after the four World Cup events. Defending the titles will be France’s Louna Ladevant and the Netherlands’ Marianne Van der Steen in difficulty, and Iran’s Mohammad Reza Safdarian and Mongolia’s Selenge Nyamdoo in speed.
During the same period, the annual World Youth Championships will also be held in Edmonton (25-28 February).
In terms of the Continental competitions, these will be held in Zilina (Slovakia), Brno (Czechia) and Utrecht (Netherlands) before the world-level events start. All the Continental Cups this season will include youth categories.
There will be also be two training camps:
Summer Training Camp – Champagny-en-Vanoise, France – 27-28 August
Perfect preparation for the World Championships as staged in the same venue. The routes will be set at varying levels and designed for competitors of all levels. Information on the camp can be found here. The tower will also be available for independent training from 29-30 August – if athletes would like to attend this camp, please register here. The cost is €50 per athlete.
Autumn Training Camp – Brno, Czech Republic – Routesetting course – 20-22 October, Training Camp – 23-25 October
A training camp with a Level 1 UIAA Routesetting course preceding it. All of the training routes for this camp will be set by the attendees of the route setter course. Further details and information on the route setting course and the training camp will follow.
Provisional calendar
World Championships
29-31 January, Champagny-en-Vanoise (France)
World Youth Championships
25-28 February, Edmonton (Canada)
World Cups
15-17 January, Cheongsong (South Korea)
21-23 January, Saas-Fee (Switzerland) – to be confirmed by 1 September
19-21 February, Calgary (Canada)
25-27 February, Edmonton (Canada)
Continental Cups – Senior and Youth Categories
28 November, Zilina (Slovakia)
5 December, Brno (Czechia)
12 December, Utrecht (Netherlands)
Training Camps
27-28 August, Champagny-en-Vanoise (France)
20-22 October/23-25 October, Brno (Czechia)
Please note the calendar may be subject to change. Any updates will be communicated as soon as confirmed.
Further Resources
Main photo: Javier Veiga Rodriguez, Spain, one of the breakout starts of the 2025-2026 season. Credit: UIAA / Kaspar Kellerhals
