Anatoli Boukreev

In 1991, after the breakup of the Soviet Union, he acquired the citizenship of the Kazakhstan Republic.

He died on December 25, 1997 in an avalanche during a winter ascent of Annapurna in Nepal.

His girlfriend Linda Wylie traveled to Kathmandu in hopes of finding and rescuing him. But upon her arrival, she confirmed the news that there were no hopes of finding him alive. His body was never found.

He was born on January 16, 1958 in Korkino, Russia in a poor family. He completed his high school in 1975.

After high school, he got enrolled at the Chelyabinsk University for Pedagogy and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in physics in 1979. Alongside, he also finished his course for cross-country skiing.

After graduation, he moved to Kazakhstan and in 1985 he became a part of a Kazakhstani mountaineering team in order to pursue his dream of mountaineering.

In 1987, he accomplished his first solo ascent of the Lenin Peak (7,134 m), on the border of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

In 1989, he climbed the third highest peak on earth, Kangchenjunga (8556 m), via a new route with ‘Second Soviet Himalaya Expedition’.

In 1990, he went along with American climbers in the ascent of Mt. McKinley, also known as Denali, the highest mountain peak in North America with a summit elevation of 6168 m above sea level. The expedition was successful and upon the team’s return, he completed a solo speed ascent of Mt. McKinley.

In 1991, he successfully completed his first climbing expedition to the highest peak on Earth, Mount Everest (8,848 m), via the South Col route.

In 1993, he was a part of the ascent to K2 (8611 m), the second-highest mountain on Earth, via the Abruzzi Spur, with Peter Metzger and Andy Locke. He faced a dangerous situation during this ascent, when his teammates suggested climbing the summit without taking any rest but he was exhausted and out of energy for the ascent. He was reluctant at first but agreed to climb and thus, on reaching the summit, he was so physically and emotionally drained that he did not feel the joy of victory.

In 1990, he decided to attempt a solo ascent to Mt. McKinley, the highest mountain peak in North America. He finished his ascent in a record time of 10.5 hours from the base to the summit and his feat was noted by ‘Climbing’ magazine in a 1990 issue.

In 1996, during his expedition to Mount Everest, he single handedly rescued three stranded climbers from the blizzard which struck them as soon as they reached the summit. It was described as one of the most amazing rescues in mountaineering history and he was highly praised for his act of gallantry.

In 1997, he was honored with the ‘David A. Sowles Memorial Award’, American Alpine Club's highest award for valor in recognition of his heroic role in rescuing three climbers in the 1996 Everest disaster.