Reinhold Messner
Reinhold Messner (2015)
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Italian |
| Born |
17 September 1944 Brixen (Bressanone), Italy |
| Website | www.reinhold-messner.de |
| Climbing career | |
| Known for | First to climb all 14 eight-thousanders |
| First ascents |
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| Major ascents | Mount Everest first solo ascent without supplemental oxygen |
Reinhold Messner (German pronunciation: [ˈʁaɪ̯nhɔlt ˈmɛsnɐ]; born 17 September 1944) is an Italian mountaineer, adventurer, explorer, and author from the autonomous Italian province of South Tyrol.
He made the first ascent of Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen, along with Peter Habeler, and was the first climber to ascend all fourteen peaks over 8,000 metres (26,000 ft) above sea level. He was also the first person who crossed the Antarctica and Greenland without snowmobiles or dog sleds. Furthermore he crossed the Gobi Desert alone. Messner also published more than 80 books about his experiences as a climber and explorer.
Born in Brixen (Bressanone), Italy, Messner is an Italian citizen whose mother tongue is German. He is also fluent in Italian and English. He grew up in Villnöß and spent his early years climbing in the Alps and fell in love with the Dolomites. His father, Josef Messner, was a teacher. He was also very strict and sometimes severe with Reinhold. Josef led Reinhold to his first summit at the age of five. Reinhold had eight brothers and one sister; he later climbed with his brother Günther and made Arctic crossings with his brother Hubert.
When Reinhold was 13, he began climbing with his brother Günther, age 11. By the time Reinhold and Günther were in their early twenties, they were among Europe's best climbers.
Since the 1960s, Messner, inspired by Hermann Buhl, was one of the first and most enthusiastic supporters of alpine style mountaineering in the Himalayas, which consisted of climbing with very light equipment and a minimum of external help. Messner considered the usual expedition style ("siege tactics") disrespectful toward nature and mountains.
Messner's first major Himalayan climb in 1970, the unclimbed Rupal face of Nanga Parbat, turned out to be a tragic success. Both he and his brother Günther reached the summit, but Günther died two days later on the descent of the Diamir face. Reinhold lost seven toes, which had become badly frostbitten during the climb and required amputation. Reinhold was severely criticized for persisting on this climb with the less experienced Günther. The 2010 movie Nanga Parbat by Joseph Vilsmaier is based on his account of the events.
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