Patrick Edlinger (15 June 1960 – 16 November 2012) was a professional French

rock climber Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, across, or down natural rock formations. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Rock climbing is a physically and ...

. Edlinger is considered a pioneer and a legend of

sport climbing Sport climbing (or Bolted climbing) is a form of rock climbing that relies on permanent anchors (or bolts), permanently fixed into the rock for climber protection, in which a rope that is attached to the climber is clipped into the anchors to ...

. He was the second-ever climber in history to ascend routes of grade with ''Nymphodalle'' (1979), and grade with ''Le Toit'' (1981). He was the first-ever climber in history to

onsight __NOTOC__ This glossary of climbing terms is a list of definitions of terms and jargon related to rock climbing and mountaineering. The specific terms used can vary considerably between different English-speaking countries; many of the phrases d ...

routes of grade with ''Captain crochet'' (1982), and grade with ''La Polka des Ringards'' (1982).

Early life

Patrick Edlinger was born in 1960 in

Dax, Landes Dax (; oc, Dacs; eu, Akize) is a Communes of France, commune in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France, Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Landes (department), Landes Departments of France, department. It is known as a spa destina ...

, in southwestern France. He was barely a teenager when he began climbing and, after attaining his first job as a truck driver, decided he loved cliffs more than highways.Davison, Phil (2 December 2012)
"Patrick Edlinger: ‘The god of free climbing’ who became a national hero in France"
''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

''.

Career

In 1983 he made the first ascent of ''Ça Glisse Au Pays des Merveilles'' at

Buoux Buoux ju̟ːksis a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Located on the north side of the Luberon, the town is known for the high cliffs that surround it, making it a popular venue f ...

, one of the first in France. He won some of the first climbing competitions in history:

Sportroccia Sportroccia was the very first international climbing competition. Four annual Sportroccia editions were held in 1985, 1986, 1988, and 1989, in the village of Bardonecchia and Arco, Italy. History The first edition of Sportroccia was organized i ...

in 1986,

Rock Master Rock Master is an international climbing competition held every year in Arco, Italy. The event takes place in two rounds: the first is an on-sight session and the second is called "after work". The final classification is given by the sum of th ...

and

Snowbird Snowbird is a common name for the dark-eyed junco (''Junco hyemalis''). Snowbird may also refer to: Places *Snowbird, Utah, an unincorporated area and associated ski resort *Snowbird Lake, a lake in the Northwest Territories, Canada *Snowbird ...

in 1988. He is also known to the world for his films on soloing in the steep, 500m Verdon. "Le Blond" had a smooth and beautiful style of climbing that lent itself to film. He became famous in 1982 after ''La Vie au bout des doigts'', a documentary by Jean-Paul Janssen depicting him free-soloing in

Final years and death

After a near-fatal fall in 1995 from a steep-sided cove in southern France, Edlinger suffered a brief cardiac arrest. Following this he retired from the extreme forms of free climbing and co-founded the magazine ''Roc 'n Wall'', which served as a bible to the burgeoning European "free solo" climbing movement. He settled close to Verdon Gorge, where the vacation rental he ran with his Slovakian-born wife Matia, Gîte l'Escales in La Palud-sur-Verdon, became a starting-point for rock climbers. His final years were marked by a long battle against depression and alcoholism, which he described as the "greatest challenge of my life." Edlinger died at age 52 after falling down stairs at his home. He is survived by his wife, Maťa, and their daughter, Nastia, who was 10 years old at the time. The French minister of sports and youth, Valérie Fourneyron, said of Edlinger, "Patrick was a pioneer in France for free climbing at a high level, a man who had a thirst for the absolute challenge. He refused to compromise and disdained conventions. He dedicated his life to his passion – climbing. He was the first to establish climbing as a true discipline of live art, paving the way for many to climb with respect for nature."

Notable climbs

The following a summary of his notable ascents: * 8c/5.14b: ** ''Maginot Line'' –

Volx Volx (; oc, Vòus) is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Population See also * Coteaux de Pierrevert AOC * Luberon The Luberon ( or ; Provençal: ''Lebe ...

(FRA) – 1989 – Second ascent of Ben Moon's route (1989) ** ''Azincourt'' –

(FRA) – 1989 – Ben Moon's route (1989) ** ''le Minimum'' –

(FRA) – 1989 ** ''Asymptote'' – Saint-Crépin (FRA) – 1989 – Second ascent of Antoine Le Menestrel's route (1987) ** ''Are you Ready?'' –

Châteauvert Châteauvert (; oc, Castèuverd) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Châteauvert is well known for rock climbing. See also *Communes of the Var department The following is a li ...

(FRA) – 1988 – First ascent * 8b+/5.14a: ** ''Les spécialistes'' –

Verdon Verdon may refer to: People *Verdon (surname) Places France * Verdon, Dordogne, in the Dordogne ''département'' * Verdon, Marne, in the Marne ''département'' * Vinon-sur-Verdon, an old French town in the département of Var, Provence-Alpes-Cô ...

(FRA) – 1989 – Second ascent of Jean-Baptiste Tribout's route (1987) * 8b/5.13d: ** ''Les sucettes à l'anis'' – Cimaï (FRA) – 1988 – First ascent * 8a+/5.13c: ** ''La Femme Blanche'' –

Céüse Céüse (french: Montagne de Céüse) is a limestone mountain in the Hautes-Alpes ''département'' of France near Gap and Sigoyer. The "Pic de Céüse" is at an elevation of , and the whole massif is included in the Natura 2000 protected area. ...

(FRA) – 1985 ** ''La Boule'' – Sainte-Victoire (FRA) – 1984 – First ascent * 8a/5.13b: ** ''Orange Mécanique'' – Cimaï (FRA) – 1989 –

Free solo Free solo climbing, or free soloing, is a form of technical ice or rock climbing where the climbers (or ''free soloists'') climb alone without ropes, harnesses or other protective equipment, forcing them to rely entirely on their own individual ...

ascent ** ''Sphinx Crack'' – South Platte, Colorado (USA) – 1985 ** ''Ça glisse au pays des merveilles'' –

(FRA) – 1983 – First ascent * 7c+/5.13a: ** ''La Femme Noire'' (7c/7c+) –

(FRA) ** ''Fenrir'' –

(FRA) – 1982 – First ascent * 7c/5.12d: ** ''Medius'' – St. Victoire (FRA) – 1981 ** ''La Polka des ringards'' –

(FRA) – 1980 –

On-sight __NOTOC__ This glossary of climbing terms is a list of definitions of terms and jargon related to rock climbing and mountaineering. The specific terms used can vary considerably between different English-speaking countries; many of the phrases d ...

, the world's first-ever onsight in history.

References

External links

* (Video interview during Trento Film Festival 2009) {{DEFAULTSORT:Edlinger, Patrick French rock climbers Free soloists 1960 births 2012 deaths People from Dax, Landes Sportspeople from Landes (department)