Nepalese Climbers Make History Climbing The Deadly K2 In Winter

A climbing team including a retired British Special Forces soldier triumphed, becoming the first to scale the second-highest peak in the world in winter. At midday, UK time, former Gurkha and Special Boat Service soldier Nirmal 'Nims' Purja and nine other Nepalese climbers reached the K2 summit.

When singing the Nepalese national anthem, they took the last few agonizing moves on to the 28,251ft peak together. K2 is known for its dangerous weather, and until yesterday it was the only one of the 14 highest peaks in the world that was never climbed in winter, when temperatures can drop to -80F (-62C) and wind speeds can top 100 mph.

Mr. Purja, 37, who lives in Hampshire's Eastleigh, and his fellow climbers climbed on to the summit as a team, ensuring that the remarkable place in history was shared. At around 1 a.m. local time (8 p.m. Friday in the UK), they had set out from a high camp and it took 16 hours to reach the summit.

Shortly afterward, a post on Mr. Purja's website declared: 'The impossible is made possible! K2 Winter – history made for mankind, history made for Nepal.

'A very special moment. The whole team waited for 10m below the summit to form a group then stepped on to the summit together whilst singing our Nepalese National Anthem.'

(Picture: Getty)

As the ten climbers faced having to descend in the dark, however, the risk was not over. All made it comfortably back to the 23,500ft camp. Their progress is even more impressive as a camp was ruined in high winds last weekend and Mr Purja and other climbers slept at more than 23,000ft one night in a shallow crevasse because it was too windy to put up their tents.

A drastic change in the atmosphere made it possible for them to begin their summit attack. News of their victory, however, was tempered by news that experienced Spanish climber Sergi Mingote had died after falling down the mountain from a place below.