Mini Lockpicking Competition 2021

This year, we organized at least one small lockpicking competition as part of the international exhibition LockFest 2021, which took place on Saturday, September 25, 2021, in the afternoon at the Thermal Hotel in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. The main sponsors of the event were Locksmith Service s.r.o. and A. Wendt GmbH. The competition featured only one discipline, where participants tested their skills on more challenging locks and cylinders. This was reflected in the opening times—if they managed to open them at all. The time limit for opening was 5 minutes, and only picks and tension tools were allowed, with the optional use of a vise. Nearly 20 lockpickers from several countries participated, including competitors from Germany, Italy, Hungary, Ukraine, and, of course, the Czech Republic.

In the preliminary round, competitors attempted to open the following cylinders and padlocks: cylinders: Viro, FAB, EVVA and padlocks: FAB, Tokoz, EVVA etc. All lockpickers successfully opened the Tokoz (EMO) padlock, some in just a few seconds. The Viro cylinder was opened by almost everyone, except for one participant. From each table, the top 4 competitors advanced to the A & B Finals, leading to a total of six competition rounds. In the A & B Finals, the difficulty level increased significantly, featuring high-security cylinders and padlocks. At Table B, no one managed to open the BKS cylinder or the Tokoz Alfa padlock, but some competitors successfully picked the Tokoz Beta padlock. The Abus Titalium padlock appeared at both tables and was opened by nearly all participants. Competitors at Table A faced an even tougher challenge, receiving locks that were particularly difficult to open non-destructively. The FAB 1000 cylinder and the FAB Control padlock were successfully opened by more than half of the competitors. The Euro Secure and Mul-T-Lock Classic PRO cylinders were also picked. The only lock that remained undefeated in this competition was the Mul-T-Lock Interactive cylinder.