Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme

The Union Internationale des Associations d' Alpinisme ( UIAA Mountaineering and Climbing English name International Federation; German about " International Union of Alpinismusvereinigungen ") is an international association of various Alpinist Associations. The UIAA has, among others, the task of defining strict safety standards for climbing equipment such as ropes, harnesses, karabiners and other equipment. The UIAA also supports young climber, for example through joint trips abroad, is committed to the conservation and until 2005 he was the organizer of the Climbing World Cups and World Championships.

History

The UIAA was founded in 1932 in Chamonix (France) from 18 representatives of national alpinist clubs. The first president of the Swiss Charles Egmond d' Arcis was chosen. 1950 represented the UIAA half a million climbers, a number that grew in the following decades to over two and a half million. In 2008, the German Alpine Club (DAV) and the Austrian Alpine Association ( OeAV) and the Association came from Alpine clubs in Austria ( VAVÖ ) from the UIAA. Thus, the UIAA lost half of their represented by mountaineers. Currently, the UIAA has about 80 organizations from 57 countries, representing approximately 1.3 million members in all continents.

Since 2013 DAV, OeAV and VAVÖ are again a member of the UIAA.

The seat of the UIAA in Bern.

UIAA scale

After organizing a difficulty scale, the UIAA scale was named. It enables the comparison of different climbing routes in the rock according to their difficulty. The UIAA scale is given in Roman or Arabic numerals. It extends from 1 to 11, where the difficulty increases with the degree. The scale is open at the top. In addition, fine gradations with plus or minus sign (for example, 7 - for an easy route in the 7th degree or 5 for a difficult 5 Series ) are common.

UIAA standard

The UIAA has developed a standard for different pieces of equipment. This standard aims to ensure that the equipment can fulfill the requirements according to their job and the stresses occurring withstand. UIAA standards are closely based on the standards of the EU (CE or EN or CEN ), but sometimes differ slightly from that price.

UIAA Summit definition

For the definition of the four-thousand - peaks of the Alps, a commission has determined the surveys, which are considered peak.

For elevations below 4000 meters there is no comparable setting.