The images are historical.
A video selfie, filmed at the top of K2, the second highest mountain in the world.
A first because the ascent of this Himalayan summit had never been possible in the winter.
The ambition of men finally got the better of the last “8,000” in the world to resist the assaults of the most seasoned climbers in winter.
This feat was achieved by a 100% Nepalese team on January 16, 2021. “
We all stopped 10 meters before the end
,” describes one of the team's mountaineers, Nirmal Purja,
and we all sang together the Nepalese anthem on the way to the top
”.
The image is magnificent and symbolic: “
10, all together at the top
!
I've never seen it anywhere else
!
Entrusts the French mountaineering icon Catherine Destivelle.
It is a real national victory and not only of an individual, it is superb
!
"
It is also a small return to justice,"
explains Sophie Lavaud, the "88,000 lady" with 11 summits over 8,000 m to her credit.
They have been the shadow workers of the Himalayas for decades.
They are too often overlooked in the success of Westerners.
"
The first ascent of the 8,611 m of K2 dates back to 1954. If in summer, climbing the “mountain without mercy” located on the border between Pakistan and China in a remote valley of the Karakoram massif is already a feat, in winter it is a feat. business turns into deadly challenge.
Temperatures reach -50 degrees, terrible winds pierce technical clothing and avalanches destroy the base camps.
The attempts to achieve the summit in winter are therefore recent.
In 2011, a Russian team had to give up following the death of one of their climbers.
In 2018, a Polish team failed, failing to find cohesion in the rope.
In 2021, finally, the immortal K2 granted its access in the middle of winter to mortals.
“
It's not a page that turns,
says Sophie Lavaud,
it's a page that is written
!
»And a new chapter in mountaineering is opening… But what feats will mountaineers be able to dream of now?
Video response with 6 French people who have all reached summits at more than 8000 m altitude.