Patrick Edlinger (15 June 1960 – 16 November 2012) was a professional French rock climber, climbing author, and climbing film-maker. Edlinger is considered a pioneer of the rock-climbing disciplines of sport climbing, of competition climbing, and of free solo climbing, and was ranked amongst the world's greatest rock-climbers during the mid to late 1980s as the sport began to moderize from its traditional climbing roots and into sport-climbing and competition-climbing.
Edlinger was the second-ever climber to redpoint at grade with Nymphodalle (1979), and the second-ever at grade with Le Toit (1981). He was the first-ever climber to onsight at grade with Captain crochet (1982), and second-ever at grade with La Polka des Ringards (1982). His free solo in 1989 of Orange Mécanique was the second-ever at the grade of in history. Nicknamed "Le Blond" (after his hair), he became known for his distinctive climbing style and physical appearance within the rock climbing community.https://www.thomascrauwels.ch/en/blog/patrick-edlinger-la-blonde-escalade-icone-des-annees-80/?srsltid=AfmBOorKNUL7fHLMFkLvBdWRV6oL2OCxVw9ghri-nBSSKx_N7O39_2WT
Early life, family Patrick Edlinger was born in Dax, Landes. His father, Jean-Marie Edlinger (1936–2023), was a French Air Force pilot stationed in Dax when Patrick was born, before the family settled in La Seyne-sur-Mer. Patrick has a sister named Corinne, she appeared in films alongside her brother in José Giovanni's "Les Loups Entre Eux " (Among Wolves) (1985), credited as Corinne Edlinger in the role of Jackie, Patrick's sister.
Climbing career At 17–18, Patrick Edlinger left school to devote himself to rock climbing, frequenting major French rock climbing areas such as Buoux, the Verdon Gorge and the Calanques. It was during this period that photographer Robert Exertier arranged a meeting between Edlinger and another leading French climber, Patrick Berhault—who was three years his senior. Together, they formed a major climbing partnership in the early 1980s, achieving first free ascents at the highest difficulty grades of the time as well as notable alpine climbs.https://www.climbing.com/culture-climbing/the-tragedy-of-patrick-edlinger/ Pioneers in their field, they developed an intensive training regimen that included running, pull-ups, weight training, and flexibility work. Nicknamed "the Blond" and "the Brun" (the Dark-Haired One) respectively, they distinguished themselves through an approach that prioritized physical conditioning, lightweight gear, and free climbing—sometimes even free soloing. They distinguished themselves through feats that were challenging for the time—raising the bar for difficulty and foreshadowing a new style of climbing—while quietly shattering conventions and remaining steadfastly committed to an ethic of aesthetic movement and mastery of their ascent. From 1978 onwards, they completed several notable ascents in the Alps, such as the speed record for the "Voie des Plaques" on Ailefroide Occidentale (1,000 m, ED), completing the round trip from the village of Ailefroide in 23 hours during the winter of 1980.
Edlinger came to public attention with Jean‑Paul Janssen’s film La Vie au Bout des Doigts (Life By Fingertips) (1982), showing Edlinger free solo climbing in Buoux, and at La Piade, above the sea near Toulon. His fluid climbing style and personal physical appearance made him a recognisable figure in the climbing world. In 1983, he made the first free ascent of Ça Glisse Au Pays des Merveilles at Buoux, one of the first graded sport climbs in France. In 1984, Edlinger was the subject of the short climbing film, Opera Vertical, which concludes with a solo ascent in the Verdon Gorge.
In the summer of 1985, Edlinger — accompanied by Jean-François "Poil" Lignan and photographer Gérard Kosicki — embarked on a road trip across the United States. Starting in Colorado in late July, Edlinger sent Grand Inquisitor at Bell Buttress and completed the crack climb of Sphinx Rock in six attempts. The journey continued to Lake Tahoe, California, where he ascented the famous Grand Illusion, the world's first ever route. In the Joshua Tree desert, he climbed Asteroid Crack and Five Crying Cowboys before, among others, conquering the basalt columns of El Matador at Devils Tower, Wyoming, along with many other major routes of the era. His cross-country trip concluded in September on the overhangs of the Shawangunks, near New York. The story of this journey is told through images in the book Rock Games (1985) by photographer Gérard Kosicki.https://alpinemag.fr/patrick-edlinger-legende-escalade/
Edlinger won some of the first competition climbing events in history, including Sportroccia (1986), Rock Master and Snowbird (1988), the first ever competition climbing event to be held in the US, at the 1988 International Sport Climbing Championships in Snowbird, Utah."Deseret News", 'French Dominate Climbing Meet at Snowbird", 13 June 1988. In 1988, at the Rock Master competition in Arco, Italia—held for the first time on an artificial wall—Patrick Edlinger and Stefan Glowacz tied for first place. The event marked climbing's transition into its modern, media-focused form. In 1989, he won the World Championships in Munich. The final featured a "side-by-side" showdown between German climber Wolfgang Güllich and Patrick Edlinger.
In 1989, atrick Edlinger completed a free solo ascent of Orange Mécanique , which was the second-ever time a climber has free-soloed at that grade in history.https://alpinemag.fr/patrick-edlinger-legende-escalade/ at Cimaï (South of France), an extraordinary feat for the time at that level of difficulty.https://climbing-history.org/climb/1508/orange-m%C3%A9canique
On 21 July 1995, while training in the Calanques near Marseille on a route graded , he skipped several pieces of protection to save time; a hold broke and he fell about 18 metres. He survived with muscle tears and a cardiac arrest, but the accident marked the end of his top‑level career and of his extreme free solos. Afterwards he gradually withdrew from competition climbing and from free soloing, turning to other projects (route development, mentoring, life in the Verdon) 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.
From August 2000 to February 2001, Patrick Berhault undertook a grand traverse of the Alps—spanning 167 days, 22 ascents, and over a thousand kilometers on foot, skis, and mountain bike—traveling from Slovenia to Menton. Sometimes solo and sometimes accompanied by friends, the journey was documented in the film La Cordée de Rêve (2001) by Gilles Chappaz. It was during this expedition—specifically the Dolomites leg—that Patrick Edlinger reunited with his "brother-in-arms," reforming their legendary climbing partnership after 25 years. Together, they tackled several iconic, historic mountaineering routes in high speed times : August 27, 2000: Triglav North Face, 2,863 m (Julian Alps). September 5, 2000: Cima Ovest, 2,973 m (Dolomites), Cassin-Ratti Route. September 6, 2000: Cima Grande, 2,999 m (Dolomites), Brandler-Hasse Route. September 11, 2000: Civetta, 3,218 m (Dolomites), Solleder Route. September 12, 2000: Civetta, Punta Tissi (Dolomites), Phillip-Flamm Route. September 13, 2000: Civetta, Cima Su Alto, 2,958 m (Dolomites), Livanos-Gabriel Route. September 16, 2000: Marmolada, 3,342 m (Dolomites), Voie du Poisson (Fish Route). September 18, 2000: Marmolada di Rocca, 3,265 m (Dolomites), Vinatzer Route with Messner variation. September 25, 2000: Crozzon di Brenta, 3,135 m (Dolomites), pillar of the French. September 26, 2000: Brenta Alta, 2,960 m (Dolomites), Detassis route. Patrick Berhault wrote in his logbook: “Marmolada. Lightning, hail, soaked to the skin. We laugh like kids. »
Final years and death Haunted by old demons, and by the death in 2004 of his friend and alter-ego, Patrick Berhault,https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/remembering-patrick-berhault-20th-anniversary-of-his-death.html which occurred following a fall in the Swiss Alps, Patrick Edlinger's final years were marked by a long battle against depression and addictions, which he described as the "greatest challenge of my life".https://livre.tourisme-alpes-haute-provence.com/patrick-edlinger-jean-michel-asselin/
Patrick Edlinger died on November 16, 2012, at the age of 52, after falling down stairs at his home, in his village of La Palud-sur-Verdon. He is survived by his wife, Matia, and their daughter, Nastia, who was 10 years old at the time. At his funeral in Manosque, around 200 friends and admirers attended; among those mentioned were Jean-Paul Lemercier, Michel Béal, Jean-Michel Asselin and photographer Maurice Rebeix.https://www.ledauphine.com/societe/2012/11/22/patrick-edlinger-a-rejoint-le-paradis-des-grimpeurs?utm_source=chatgpt.com
Tributes and Legacy
On this death, tributes came from major global rock climbers including Catherine Destivelle, Lynn Hill, Ron Kauk, Alain Robert, Stefan Glowacz, Ben Moon, Chris Sharma, Adam Ondra, and Jerry Moffatt.https://www.ukclimbing.com/articles/features/patrick_edlinger_-_le_blond-5117 Lynn Hill wrote a personal tribute, recalling climbing and working with Edlinger and describing him as an inspiration to her generation. 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 ».
His legacy is also rememberd in the routes and structures named in his honour: in 2012 Chris Sharma equipped a route called Le Blond in Oliana,(Spain), the climbing gym in Barcelonnette was named after him in 2018, and a 250‑metre route was opened in 2021 in the Verdon Gorge.
Notable climbs The following a summary of his notable ascents:
8c/5.14b: Maginot Line – Volx (FRA) – 1989 – Second ascent of Ben Moon's route (1989) Azincourt – Buoux (FRA) – 1989 – Ben Moon's route (1989) Le Minimum – Buoux (FRA) – 1989 Asymptote – Saint-Crépin (FRA) – 1989 – Second ascent of Antoine Le Menestrel's route (1987) Are you Ready? – Châteauvert (FRA) – 1988 – First ascent 8b+/5.14a: Les Spécialistes – Verdon (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 (FRA) – 1985 La Boule – Sainte-Victoire (FRA) – 1984 – First ascent 8a/5.13b: Orange Mécanique – Cimaï (FRA) – 1989 – Free solo ascent Sphinx Crack – South Platte, Colorado (USA) – 1985 Ça Glisse au pays des merveilles – Buoux (FRA) – 1983 – First ascent 7c+/5.13a: La Femme Noire (7c/7c+) – Céüse (FRA) Fenrir – Verdon (FRA) – 1982 – First ascent 7c/5.12d: Medius – St. Victoire (FRA) – 1981 La Polka des ringards – Buoux (FRA) – 1980 – On-sight, the world's first-ever onsight in history.
Films and documentaries
1980: Overdon by Jean-Paul Janssen. 1981: Over-Ice by Jean-Paul Janssen. 1981: Oversand by Jean-Paul Janssen. 1982: La Vie Au Bout Des Doigts by Jean-Paul Janssen: nominated for a César Award in 1984 in the Best Documentary Short Film category and adapted in 1984 for a National Geographic documentary series.https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1060354/ 1984: Opéra Vertical by Jean-Paul Janssen : adapted in 1989 for a National Geographic documentary series. 1985: Les Loups Entre Eux by José Giovanni: Patrick, the climber.