2009 Vaude Deutscher Bouldercup - Überlingen, Germany

The annual Deutscher Bouldercup, this year sponsored by the German companies Vaude and Edelrid, among others, was held in Überlingen, Germany on July 11, 2009. The outdoor competition saw some top bouldering competitors, including Kilian Fischhuber (an Austrian who wasn’t competing in an official capacity, for some reason) and the German Jonas Baumann, both of whom have won several World Cups.

The tiny tourist town of Überlingen lies on the Bodensee (aka Lake Constance), a picturesque Lake that straddles the borders of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. (A sidenote: The town itself is known as the site of a tragedy — in 2004, two airplanes collided in the airspace above Überlingen, killing all passengers). Surrounding the competition was a crowd numbering in the low hundreds, composed seemingly more of summering Germans than climbing fans. The spectators enjoyed beer, sausages, and ice cream, and toggled their attention between the competition, the waterfront, nearby sponsor booths, and an odd fountain/statue, designed by Peter Lenk, which, among other creatures, features two topless mermaids with their tails in the air, holding up an elderly man on horseback wearing ice skates.

Watching the Bouldercup, it was clear that the general populace in Germany is acquainted with and comfortable with climbing in a way that it is not yet in the United States. This was also evident by the event’s sponsor list, which was composed mostly of local Überlingen businesses. Here, some pictures from the event, which Jonas Baumann, who took first place at this year’s Vail, Colorado, Bouldering World Cup, won.

Results:

Men:
1. Baumann, Jonas
2. Danker, Stefan
3. Hoppe, Markus
4. Conrad, Mathias
5. Vacka, Bruno
6. Schmidtlein, Franz
7. Würth, Peter
8. Merz, Aric

Women:
1. Retschy, Monika
2. Böhm, Anna Katharina
3. Lehmann, Katrin
4. Loichen, Birte
5. Haag, Isabell
6. Fichtner, Andrea
7. Beil, Maria
8. Krause, Julia