Austrian is first woman to conquer 11 summits over 8,000m
VIENNA (AFP) — Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner of Austria has become the first woman to conquer 11 peaks over 8,000 metres (26,246 feet) without breathing apparatus, media reported Saturday.
She accomplished the feat on Thursday when she scaled Dhaulagiri (8,167 metres), the world's seventh highest mountain, in Nepal,
"Despite winds at 60 kilometres (37 miles) per hour, everything went well," she told the OONachrichten newspaper by telephone.
Kaltenbrunner, who was accompanied this time by fellow Austrian David Goettler, had to abandon an attempt to conquer Dhaulagiri in May last year because of a deadly avalanche.
This latest conquest puts the climber from Spital am Pyhrn, in the Austrian Alps, ahead of her rivals Nives Meroi of Italy and Edurna Pasaban of Spain, in the race to conquer the world's 14 highest mountains.
Nives Meroi became the first woman to notch up 10 peaks over 8,000 metres in May last year when she conquered Everest.
Kaltenbrunner, who began her series in 1994 with Broad Peak (8,041 metres), achieved her 10th three months after the Italian.
She has indicated that she hopes to be able to attempt in coming months the ascension of Lhotse (8,516 metres) and K2 (8,611 metres) in the Himalayas, two of the three remaining summits she has yet to conquer. If she succeeds, the only one left will be Everest.
Edurna Pasaban, who also scaled Dhaulagiri on Thursday, has notched up 10 summits, putting her neck-and-neck with Meroi.
The first man to conquer the world's 14 highest peaks, which are all in the Himalayas, was the Italian Reinhold Messner in 1986.
