Triumph on Mt. Everest : First summiteers of 83 countries

 By Ramesh Tiwari  :                                

Sixty years ago on May 29, 1953 Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay first set foot on the summit of Mount Everest. The successful ascent of Mt. Everest was the beginning of a long march to 8,848 m. high Everest for mountaineers all over the world. During the 60 years of first ascent, Mt. Everest has recorded 5,099 ascents, of which 3,144 mountaineers have successfully reached the top of Mt. Everest and 227 climbers have lost their lives during the expeditions according to Ms. Elizabeth Hawley.

Since the ascent of Mt. Everest has been one of the best adventure achievements of the human being, Tenzing and Hillary will be remembered all over the world for centuries. Their ascent is rated equivalent to the first journey of South Pole by Ryan Edmondson in 1911 and single Trans Atlantic flight of Charles Lindbergh in 1927.

Royal Geographical Society Alpine Club expedition team led by John Hunt comprising of 13 climbers with 35 Sherpa guides, 18 ton of food and climbing equipments, and 350 porters proceeded to Mt. Everest in 1953. The British expedition led by John Hunt set out for Everest in 1953. It was the eighth major expedition since 1852.

The first two-man team to make the push to Everest was Tom Bourdillon and Charles Evans, on May 26, but they had to turn back just 300 feet short of the summit when one of their oxygen masks failed. After their failure , Hillary of 33 years of age and 39 years old Tenzing reached the top on May 29,1953 creating a history of triumph over highest point in the beautiful planet.

A New Zealand bee keeper Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay reached the summit of Mount Everest together on Friday, May 29, 1953 making a milestone in world mountaineering history. Hillary recalled that both of them shook hands, threw their arms around each other and thumped shoulders in exuberant joy. The news of successful ascent of Mt. Everest – the highest point on earth at 29,028 ft. (8848 m.) – broke in Britain on the eve of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

Tenzing Norgay was born in Nepal in May of 1914. After he moved to Darjeeling, India at the age of 19, the British Everest expedition leader Eric Shipton hired him as a high-altitude porter for a 1935 reconnaissance of the northern (Tibetan) face of the Himalaya. He joined a Swiss expedition led by the famous climber Raymond Lambert In 1952, as it made an attempt on the Lhotse Face of Everest. Tenzing and Lambert got as high as 28,215 feet (8,599 meters), less than 1,000 feet from the summit, before they were turned back due to  adverse weather. Lastly, Tenzing reached the summit of Everest together with Hillary being involved in the British expedition . Tenzing Norgay passed away on May 9, 1986, at the age of 71.

Edmund Hillary was born on July 20, 1919 in Auckland, New Zealand. He was attracted to mountain climbing at the age of 16 after a school trip to Mount Ruapehu, located on the North Island of New Zealand. After climbing different mountains in New Zealand, the Alps, and the Himalayas, he successfully climbed Mt. Everest along with Tenzing Sherpa.

Hillary was very concerned with the well-being of the Nepalese Sherpa and thus helped to build schools and other infrastructures in Khumbu region of Nepal.  He established the Himalayan Trust, an organization dedicated to improving the lives of people living in the Himalayas.

He was also worried about the degradation of environment in the Himalayas and commercialization of climbing Everest in recent years. Hillary died of heart attack in Auckland Hospital in New Zealand in 2008 at the age of 88.

Ernst Schmied and Juerge Marmet, members of the Swiss Expedition, became the third and fourth summiteers to reach the summit on May 23, 1956.

Three young Chinese mountaineers reached the summit of Mount Everest on May 25, 1960, conquering the world’s highest peak from its difficult northern slopes for the first time in mountaineering history.

Wang Fu-chou (25-year-old geologist from Peking, Master of Sports and member of the Chinese Communist Party), Konbu (27-year-old People’s Liberation Army man of Tibetan nationality, First Grade Sportsman) and Chu Yin- hua (25-year-old lumberjack from Szechuan Province, Master of Sports and Communist Party Member) successfully reached the summit.

Jim Whittaker was the eighth summiteer and the first American to climb Mt. Everest on May 1, 1963. He is an author of an award-winning memoir ‘ A Life on the Edge: Memoirs of Everest and Beyond.’ Stacy Allison was the first North American woman to climb Mount Everest.

Mountaineer Nawang Gombu was the 10th summiteer to reach the summit of Everest, who was the youngest climbing Sherpa on the team of Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary in 1953.Gombu had served the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (HMI) Darjeeling for more than 40 years before retiring as Field Director in 1999.

Gombu was the first man to have scaled Mount Everest twice (1963, 1965). In 1963, Gombu scaled Mount Everest with James W Whittaker- the first American team to climb Mt Everest and in 1965, he again climbed with Captain AS Cheema- the first Indian ascent team.

Naomi Uemura and Teruo Matsuura were the first Japanese to reach the summit of Mt. Everest (May 11th 1970)  , though there is controversy regarding  the first summiteers .It is said that Naomi Uemura led almost all route from the last camp to the top, but at final moment, Uemura gave way to the elder Matsuura.

Italian Summiteers Rinaldo Carrel and Mirko Minuzzo were the first summiteers from Italy to scale Everest in 1973, when Sambhu Tamang also successfully climbed Mt. Everest at the age of 18, being the youngest climber to reach the summit.

Mountaineer Doug Scott became the first Briton to summit Everest in 1975 and his climbing partner Dougal  Haston made a first ascent up the Southwest Face. Doug Scott co-founded a charity Community Action Nepal to help primary and secondary schools, deaf children, health posts and clean water supplies.

Wolfgang Nairz summited Everest on May 3, 1978 becoming the first from Austria together with Horst Bergmann. Nairz is better known as the expedition leader in which Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler summited Everest five days later, becoming the first climbers to summit Everest without the use of bottled oxygen.

As the men had dominated the climbs of Mt. Everest for more than 22 years after first ascent by Tenzing and Hillary, a history was created in 1975. Junko Tabei, born on September 22, 1939 in Fukushima Prefecture of Japan, became the first woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest on May 16, 1975.

She opines, “Climbing Everest has become a status symbol, and even a big entertainment. People have started competing over the speed with which they’ve made the ascent, whether they climbed to the peak by themselves, and how old they were when they made it to the top. They have boasted how long they could stay on the summit, how long they were free of oxygen tanks, or how they managed to be naked on the peak. There’s been this thinking that you have to do something to get attention.”

Tabei says she is lucky to have climbed the mountain before such stunts became the norm. In her time, mountaineers aimed for Everest simply for the challenges and joys of climbing it. The Himalayan Adventure Trust of Japan, a nonprofit environmental group headed by Junko Tabei, has campaigned for sustainable mountaineering, and garbage problem management on Everest. 

Pasang Lhamu Sherpa, the first Nepali woman to reach top of the world in 1993, lost her life during descent on May 10 that year due to adverse weather in Everest region.

Phu Dorje Sherpa was the 23rd person to Summit Everest. Some would say he was the first Nepali Everest Summiter, others say Tenzing Norgay Sherpa was. Phu Dorje , a native of  Khumjung Solukhumbu died in a fall in the icefall on Everest October 18, 1969.

The world’s highest mountain has claimed lives of more than 225 mountaineers after George Mallory and Andrew Irving  disappeared in 1924 in the Everest region .George Mallory,  summed up the allure of Everest before his fatal attempt to climb it in 1924: “Because it’s there”.

 All the summiteers have created a history of their adventures and climbed the popular peaks all over the world. So far, climbers from different 83 countries have reached the summit of Mt. Everest.

Details of the first Everest summiteers (ascents on the same day) from different countries of the world till 2012 December – 

 First Summiteers of Mt. Everest from different countries (1953-2012)

        Name                              Country                    Date                     Route  

1 Tenzing Norgay                    Nepal                     29.5.1953           South Col

2 Edmund Hillary                    New Zealand            29.5.1953               ”           

3 Ernst Schmied                    Switzerland              23.5.1956                ”      

4 Juerge Marmet                    Switzerland              23.5.1956               ”                                   

5 Wang Fu Chou                    China                      25.5 .1960          North Col 

6 Gonpa ( Konbu)                   China                         ”                            “

7 Chu Ying  Hua                     China                        ”                             “

8 Jim Whittaker                      USA                        1.5.1963              South Col

9 Nawang Gombu                   India                         1.5.1963                    ” 

10 Naomi Uemora                  Japan                       11.5.1970                  “

11 Teruo Matsuura                 Japan                       11.5.1970                     ”                       

12 Ranaldo Carrel                    Italy                       5.5.1973                      ”       

13 Miko Minunzzo                   Italy                       5.5.1973                      ”                      

14 Doug Scott                         British                   24.9.1975            S-W Face

15 Ko Sang Don                      Korea                    15.9.1977           South Col. 

16 Wolfgang Nairz                  Austria                    3.5.1978                   ”       

17 Robert Sxhauer                 Austria                   3.5.1978                  “

18 Horst Bergmann               Austria                    3.5.1978                  ”           

19 Rainhard Karl                    Germany                10.5.1978                “

20  Jean Afanvassief              France                    15.10.1978          South Col

21  Hicolas Jaeger                 France                   15.10.1978          South Col

22  Pierre Mazeaud              France                     15.10.1978          South Col

23 Ms. Wanda Rutkewicz      Poland                     16.10.1978          South Col

24 Zaplotnik Zerej                 Yugoslavia               13.5.1978            West Ridge

 25 Stremfel J. Andre           Yugoslavia               13.5.1978             West Ridge

26 Martin Zabaleta               Spain                       14.5.1980            South Col

27 Myslovsky Eduard           USSR                       4.5.1982            South -West Face

28  Ralyberdin Vladmir         USSR                      4.5.1982                       “

29 Bershov Serget               USSR                      4.5.1982                        ”      

 30  Turkevttch Mikhail          USSR                     4.5.1982                           ”  

31 Laurie Skreslet               Canada                  5.10.1982                South Col

32  Hristo I. Prodanov           Bulgaria                  5.5.1984                West Ridge

33 Iva G. Valcheev               Bulgaria                 5.5.1984                         “

34  Metodi S. Savov             Bulgaria                 5.5.1984                           ”                          

35 Tim Mccartnet Snape      Australia                3.10.1984                      North Face

36 Greg Mirtimer                Australia                3.10.1984                    North Face

37  Bart Vos                      Netherlands            8.10.1984                      South E.

38   Jozef Psotka               Czechoslovakia      15.10.1984                    South

39  Zoltan Demzan             Czechoslovakia       15.10.1984                    South

40  Bjorn Myerl und            Norway                      21.4.1985                   S-E Ridge

41  Ricardo Torres Nava     Mexico                      16.5.1989                   S-W Face

42 Oskar Bertil Kihlburg      Sweden                    10.5.1990                  South Col

43  Rudy Van Snick           Belgium                   10.5.1990                  South Col

44 Cham Yick Kal            Hong Kong            12.5.1992                     S-E Ridge

45  Doron Meir Erel           Israel                      12.5. 1992                 S-E Ridge

46  Mauricio Purto             Chile                     15.5.1992                    S-E Ridge

47  Jonathan C. Pratt         Chile                15.5.1992                       S-E Ridge

48  Eugene Berger             Luxembourg          1.10.1992                   S-E Ridge

49  Augusto Ortega            Peru                    1.10.1992               S-E Ridge

50  Vcikka Gustafsson       Finland                10.5.1993               South Ridge

51  Ivan Dusharin               Russia                  12.5.1992               S-E Ridge

52 Andrew Volkov              Russia                   12.5.1992               S- E Ridge

53 Lliy Babelnikov              Russia                   12.5.1992               S- E Ridge

54  Alexandre Guerassimev   Russia                   12.5.1992              S- E Ridge

55 Ramon B. Suarez         Venezuela             7.10. 1993             South Ridge

56 Graham F. Hoyland      Venezuala               7.10.1993             South Ridge

57  David Kim Adams        Venezuala               7.10.1993             South Ridge

58  Tomas Heinrich              Argentina                  15.5.1995            S-E Ridge

59  Makalu Mingho Gau      Taipei China              10.5.1996           Normal

60 Ms. L. Gammer Gaurd     Kazakhastan            10.5.1996              South

61 Charlotte Fox                    Denmark                   10.5.1996            South

62  Ian Woodall                    South Africa               25.5.1996            S-E Ridge

63  Ms. Cathy O’ Dowd       South Africa               25.5.1996            S-E Ridge

64  Misrin                               Indonesia                   11.10.1996         S-E Ridge

65  Asmujino                         Indonesia                   11.10.1996          S-E Ridge

66  Bjorn Olasson                 Iceland                       21.5.1997             S-E Ridge

67 Einar Stefanson               Iceland                       21.5. 1997             S-E Ridge

68 Hallgrimur Magnisson   Iceland                       21.5.1997              S-E Ridge

69  Nicola Kekus                   Iceland                      21.5.1997              S-E Ridge

70  Magendran Munisamy   Malaysia                 23.5.1997              S-E Ridge

71  Mohandas Nagappan      Malaysia                23.5.1997               S-E Ridge

72  Hamid Reza Olanj             Iran                        20.5.1998                S-E Ridge

73 Mohammad Oraz                           Iran                 20.5.1998         S-E Ridge

74  Mohammad H.Najarian              Iran                   20.5.1998         S-E Ridge

75  Jalal Cheshmeh Gasabani          Iran                    20.5.1998        S-E Ridge

76  Bernardo Gurachim                    Bolivia               24.5.1998          S-E Ridge

76 Swee Chiow Khoo                        Singapore         25.5.1998          S-E Ridge 

77  Edwin Cheok Wai Siew              Singapore           25.5.1998        S-E Ridge

78 Benedict Kashakavili                   Georgia              12.5.1999         S-E Ridge

79  Bindznia                                        Georgia            12.5.1999          S-E Ridge

80 Aphi Gigani                                     Georgi a           12.5.1999         S-E Ridge

81 Ms. Elsa Avila                                 Georgia             12.5.1999         S-E Ridge

82 Lev Sarkisov                                   Armenia           12.5.1999          S-E Ridge

83  Nazir Ahmad Sabir                      Pakistan            17.5.2000         S-E Ridge

84  Davorin Kamicar                          Slovenia          7.10.2000           S -E Ridge

85  France Oderlap                            Slovenia            7.10.2000         S-E Ridge

86  Tunc Findik                                   Turkey              23.5.2001         S-E Ridge

87  Zsolt Eross                                    Hungary          25.5.2002           S-E Ridge

88  Laszlo Varkonvi                            Hungary           25.5.2002         S-E Ridge 

89  Sibusiso Emmanuel Vilane        Swaziland         26.5.2003          S-E Ridge

90  Michael Murphy                           Ireland             22.5.2003         S-E Ridge

91  Gerard McDonnell                       Ireland              22.5.2003        S-E Ridge

92  Nikolaos Magitsis                         Greece             17.5.2004        S-E Ridge

93.  Jose Luis Peralvo                          Ecuador          2.6.2005          S-E Ridge

94  Waldemar Niclevicz                      Brazil              2.6.2005          Normal Route

95  Iravan Gustavo Burda                  Brazil               2.6.2005          Normal Route

96  Usuhbayar Gotovdor                  Mongolia         30.5.2005        S-E Ridge

97  Romeo Garduce                        Philippines          19.5.2006         Normal

98  Omar Sherif Samara                Egypt                     17.5.2007         S-E Ridge

99  Pavel Bem                                  Czech                     18.5.2007       S-E Ridge

100  Nadir Dendoune                     Algeria                   25.5.2008        S-E Ridge  

101  Faruk Saad H.Alzuman         Saudi Arabia          21.5.2008         S-E Ridge

102 Sergiey Kovalov                       Ukraine                27.5.2008           S-E Ridge

103  Oleg Paliy                                Ukraine                 27.5.2008          S-E Ridge

104  Oleksiy Lykov                          Ukraine                27.5.2008            S-E Ridge

105 Igor Storozhenko                    Ukraine                 27.5.2008           S-E Ridge

106 Mustafa M.M.Mustafa           Jordan                 21.5.2008            S-E Ridge

107  Vitidnan Rojanapanich         Thailand               22. 5.2008           Normal

108  Phan Thanh Nhien                 Vietnam              22.5.2008             Normal

109  Bui Van Neogi                         Vietnam               22.5.2008            Normal

110 Nguyen Mau Linh                     Vietnam              22.5.2008           Normal

111 Michael A.Morles Carter        Panama              23 .5.2009            Normal

112 Ms. Darija Bostjancic               Croatia               19 .5.2009            Normal

113 Ms.Iris Bostjancic                     Croatia                19 .5.2009        Normal

114  Sashko Kedev                          Macedonia           19 .5.2009         Normal

115 Angelo Eduard  Sousa              Portugal             17.5.2010           Normal

116 Nelson Cardona Carvajal          Colombia            17.5.2010         Normal

117 Ms. Rafael A.Avila Velandia      Colombia            17.5.2010        Normal

118 Ms. Andrea M.C.Mortin            Guatemala          23.5.2010      Normal

119 Khalid S. H. Al Siyabi                    Oman                 23.5.2010       Normal

120 Gergory Attard                            Malta                   17.5.2010      Normal

121 Mark Cremona                            Malta                   17.5.2010       Normal

122 Dr. Robert M.Gatt                     Malta                   17.5.2010       Normal

123 Jan Karnogursky                         Slovakia              19.5.2011           Normal

124 Ms. Suzan S. H. A. Rasmia        Palestine             21.5.2011           Normal

125  Ivan EG Carrasco                       Dominican Rep.  21.5.2011           Normal

126 Ms. Nishat Mazumdar               Bangladesh         19.5.2012          Normal

127 Abdul Mohit                                Bangladesh        19.5.2012           Normal

128 Naim Logic                                   Bosnia Herzegovina   19.5.2012 Normal

129 Georgios Andreou                     Cyprus                  19.5.2012         Normal       

130 Wilfred Cyril  Moshi                 Tanzania               19.5.2012         Normal

131 Warner R. Chinchilla                Costa Rica            25.5.2012         Normal

132  Vadims Prudnikovs                  Latvia                   26.5. 2012         Normal

133  Ms. Olga Kotova                       Latvia                   26.5. 2012         Normal

First Women Summiteers of Mt. Everest from different countries

                                              (1975-2012)

                Name                           Country                Date                            Route

1 Mrs. Junko Tabei                    Japan                16 May 1975                South Col

2 Mrs. Phantog                         China                27 May 1975                 North Col

3 Ms. Wanda Rutkewicz          Poland              16 Oct.1978                 South Col    

4 Ms. Bachendripal                   India                23 May 1984                South E. Ridge

5 Ms. Stacy Marie Allison         USA                 29 Sept.1988               South Col

6 Ms. Ingrid M. Baeyend          Belgium           12 May 1992              South E. Ridge       

7 Ms. Ginette Harrison              UK                  10 May 1993                South E. Ridgel  

8 Ms. Hyun Ok Gi                       Korea              10 May 1993               S.E. Ridge

9 Ms. Jan Elizabeth Amold        New Zealand      10 May 1993               SE Ridge

10 Ms. Pasang Lhamu Sherpa   Nepal                  22 May 1993                E. Ridge

11 Ms. Charlotte Fox                   Denmark           10 May 1996               South Col

12 Ms. L. Gammer Gaurd           Kazhakastan      10 May 1996              South Col   

13 Ms. Araceli Segarra Roca       Spain                  23 Oct.1996                SE Ridge

14 Ms. Cathy O’ Dowd                 South Africa     25 May 1996               SE Ridge         

15 Ms. Brigitte Muir                     Australia           27 May 1997               South E. Ridge

16 Mrs. Katja K. Staartjes            Netherlands     12 May 1999                South E. Ridge    

17 Ms. Elsa Avila                           Georgia             12 May 1999                South E. Ridge     

18 Ms. Reneta Chlumska             Sweden            5 May 1999                   South E. Ridge     

19 Ms. Anna Czerwinska              Canada            22 May 2000                 South E. Ridge 

20 Ms. Patricia A.S. Borqueze      Chile                22 May 2001                South E. Ridge    

21 Ms. Cristina A.P. Overem         Chile               22 May 2001                  South E. Ridge

22 Mrs. Edurne P. Lizarribar         Germany        23 May 2001                    South E. Ridge

23 Ms. Alexia Zuberer                      France             22 May 2003                     South E. Ridge   

24 Ms. Manuela Di Centa               Italy                 23 May 2003                     South E. Ridge  

25 Ms. Farkhondeh Sadegh          Iran                  30 May 2005                     South E. Ridge  

26 Ms. Ana Elise T. Boscarioli      Brazil                19 May 2006                                “

27 Ms. Marina Binti Ahmad        Malaysia            21 May 2007                                 “

28 Mrs. Noewe C. Wencelsao    Philippines         17 May 2007                                  “

29 Mrs. Janet Belarmino            Philippines           17 May 2007                                  “

30 Mrs. Carina Dayondon          Philippines           17 May 2007                                  “

31 Ms. Petya S. Kolcheva            Bulgaria               22 May 2009                                  “

32 Ms Lee Zhen Zhen Jane          Singapore             20 May 2009                                 “

33 Ms. Lee Li Hui                           Singapore              20 May 2009                              “

34 Ms. Tan Yinxuan                     Singapore              20 May 2009                                  “

35 Ms.Darija Bostjancic             Croatia                 19 May 2009                                    “

36 Ms.Iris Bostjancic                                Croatia                  19 May 2009                      “

37 Ms. Hsiuchen Chiang                          Taiwan                  19 May 2009                      “

38 Ms. Laura G.D.C. Aranda                    Mexico                 21 May 2009                      “

39 Ms. Anita Ugyan                                   Hungary               21 May 2009                     “

40 Ms. Mercedes N. Sahores                   Argentina             19 May 2009                     “

41 Ms. Rafael A.A. Velandia                     Colombia             17 May, 2010                Normal

42 Ms. Andrea M.C.Mortin                      Guatemala           23 May, 2010                    “

43 Ms. Kirsi Carina Raiha                          Finland                  17 May, 2010                    ”      

44 Ms. Suzan S.H.Alhouby Rasmia          Palestine               21 May 2011                     “

45 Ms. Dominika M.D.Degelo                 Switzerland           May 13, 2011                     “

46   Ms. Nishat Mazumdar                       Bangladesh          May 19, 2012                      “

47 Ms. Tsogzolmaa  Tseren                     Mongolia               May 19, 2012                      “

48   Ms.Olga Kotova                                   Latvia                   May 26, 2012                        “

(The writer is Editor of e-paper on travel and tourism Travelbiznews.com and Former Editor-in-Chief of Gorkhapatra National Daily.)

Courtesy: NEPAL PARBAT, Official Publication of Nepal Mountaineering Association published on the occasion of Diamond Jubilee of First Ascent of Mount Everest