he photograph “Tough Enough” by photographer Jan Novak has been awarded the TOPO Grand Prize at the twelfth edition of the CVCEPHOTO competition.
Taken in Tsaranoro (Madagascar), the photograph features climber Nico Favresse attempting to ascend one of the most demanding routes on the spectacular Karombony wall. The image captures the moment he tackles the pitch known as “Gecko” (8b+), during an intense and committed ten-day expedition alongside Melissa Le Nevé. The visual power of the scene, combined with the immense scale of the surroundings, conveys the physical and mental demands of this type of big-wall climbing challenge.
SPECIAL AWARDS
• The “BBK Mendi Film Bilbao Bizkaia Poster” Special Award has been presented to Lei Bao for “Quantum Cave Chronicles”, taken in Nongxiang Tiankeng (Guangxi, China). The photograph captures beams of sunlight penetrating the depths of this colossal karst landscape, creating an almost sacred atmosphere.
• The EITB Award has gone to Kevin Young for his photograph “Saliendo del hoyo”, a scene of underground exploration in which a caver ascends towards the surface after a day spent connecting different mining levels in Galdames, Bizkaia. The carefully designed lighting and technical planning enhance the sense of depth and emptiness.
• The Euskal Mendizale Federazioa Award has been presented to Chechu Arribas for “Rider of Storm”, an image portraying the harsh conditions of a mountain ridge exposed to extreme cold, fog and wind, where the protagonist appears to be literally “riding” through the storm.
• The Special Jury Award has gone to Yhabril Moro for “White Dance”, a delicate composition in which a descent down a snow-covered waterfall in the Pyrenees becomes a visual choreography combining nature, action and patience.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
In addition to the main awards, the jury has granted 15 Honourable Mentions to photographs by photographers from different parts of the world.
Patricia Valero (“Awesome”), Chechu Arribas (“The next summit”), Kevin Young (“Espeleo o Barranco”), Jordi Rulló (“Mt Shiribetsu”), Yhabril Moro (“La Sala”), JB Liautard (“Las Ánimas”), Susana Siscart (“Pedriza al Alba”), Aritz Gordo (“Iluminando el camino”), Yhabril Moro (“Gates of Steel”), Aritz Gordo (“Donde empieza el horizonte”), Mikel Iraeta (“Donde empieza el horizonte”), Julia Roger-Veyer (“Coeur”), Anthony Chenot (“Cosmique”), Iñaki Larrea (“Admirando el vacío”) and Javier Urbón (“Guadarrama blanco”), among others.
The awards ceremony will take place on 24 October at the Aquarium in San Sebastián, as part of a public exhibition featuring the award-winning photographs and a selection of outstanding works from the competition.
