Ice Climbing World Cup 2012: Markus Bendler wins in Busteni, Maxim Tomilov wins the 2012 World Cup

The fourth stage of the Ice Climbing World Cup 2012 which took place in Busteni was marked by numerous particular happenings, the most surprising of all was that Maxim Tomilov won the overall 2012 World Cup one stage ahead of schedule, despite his 5th place in the strange final won by the reborn Markus Bendler. In the women's event the battle for overall victory is heating up more and more, with Tolokonina winning for the second time this year and Angelika Rainer from Italy feeling the pressure in the Semifinal which resulted in a nervous climb and her only just missing out on qualifying for the final.

The men's podium was completed by Kuzovlev Nikolay from Russia who placed second and Sypavin Valentyn from the Ukraine who placed third and their final was characterised by sudden turns of events and incredible decisions made by the judges. In fact, after the first three athletes - all Russian - had fallen off the second hold, the judges decided to stop the final, switch the hold for a more "acceptable" one and let all 8 finalists start anew, even if the rules mention nothing of the sort. Perhaps this is an umpteenth new rule? This highlights how the Russian route setters were probably not up to World Cup standards, and this is underlined by the fact that the final included a 5-6m descent followed by an 8/9m traverse without quickdraws. Were the athletes to have fallen, a massive pendulum would have followed, ideal for circus trapeze artists but certainly extremely dangerous.

The women's final proved somewhat different, with a crux section which truly tested all 8 finalists. Shin Woon Seon from Korea put on a brave performance and fought hard to solve this section before falling and finishing second, while luck was on Tolokonina's side: the Russian dynoed through the crux, pendulumed for half a minute and then completed the route. Stéphanie Maureau regained her fighting form and despite not making it past the crux finished third thanks to her Semi-final result. In the penultimate round Angelika Rainer failed to climb to the best of her ability and this was also due to a broken hold; when she restarted she fought hard against exhaustion and nervousness and made it to one move from the final! This mishap means that the Women's World Cup will go down to the wire as the provisional results are led by Rainer with 292 points, followed by Tolokonina just one point behind, and Anna Gallyamova trailing with 262 points.

The Speed event was won by different athletes than those who won the Lead, bar Maria Tolokonina who made a double-whammy in Busteni, beating Filippova and Shabalina, while Kolchegoshev Kirill, Golub Vlad and Pavel Gulyaev formed the all-Russian men's podium. Alexey Tomilov - Maxim's brother -comfortably leads the provisional Speed World Cup, while the Women's is still completely up for grabs.

The fifth and final stage in Kirov will prove decisive for the Women's Lead World Cup therefore. With the same Busteni route setters, three Russian and two Slovenian judges this stage will be akin to entering the lion's den for Angelika Rainer, but we're sure that she will hold her own and, together with the other athletes, will produce a spectacular competition. Things will be somewhat different in the men's event, since Maxim Tomilov will have sweet dreams - so to speak - while all the others will battle it out for the remaining podium positons. The coldest stage of the circuit with the lowest temperatures will certainly provide the “hottest” final battle.

The final stage of the Ice climbing World Cup will take place in 3 week's time, from 8 - 10 March in Kirov, Russia...


Results - 4th stage of the Ice World Cup 2012 (Busteni - Romania)
Women’s Lead
1. TOLOKONINA, Maria RUS
2. SHIN, Woonseon KOR
3. MAUREAU, Stephanie FRA
Men’s Lead
1. BENDLER, Markus AUS
2. KUZOVLEV, Nikolay RUS
3. SYPAVIN Valentin UKR
Women’s Speed
1. TOLOKONINA, Maria RUS
2. FILIPPOVA, Maryam RUS
3. SHABALINA, Viktoria RUS
Men’s Speed
1. KOLCHEGOSHEV, Kirill RUS
2. GOLUB, Vlad RUS
3. GULYAEV, Pavel RUS