Olympic torch scales Everest (Repeat)
Beijing. May 9. INTERFAX - The Olympic flame reached the top of the
world Thursday morning, carried to the summit of Mount Everest by
climbers wearing oxygen masks to breathe in the thin air of the earth's
highest point, according to media reports.
A 21-year-old Tibetan woman -- the youngest member of the expedition --
carried the flame atop the peak. Once there, the mountaineers removed
their masks so television cameras could record their faces and so they
could shout and cheer their feat.
The climbers, braving gusty winds and freezing wind-chill, relayed the
flame -- ignited from the main Olympic flame, now making a course across
China en route to host city Beijing -- to the summit by 9:15 a.m. (9:15
p.m. ET Wednesday), about two hours ahead of schedule, CNN reported.
"They were very motivated; they were very excited," journalist Tomas
Etzler said from the Everest base camp at 5,360 meters (17,600 ft).
The climbers started their ascent at 3 a.m. Thursday (3 p.m. Wednesday)
along the Tibetan side of Everest, known there as Chomolungma.
Twenty-two of the 31 climbers were Tibetan.
The torches and fuel used in the relay were specially developed by
Chinese research, allowing the flame to continue burning at such high
elevations, Etzler said.
Harsh weather had forced a delay in the climb, damaging several camps
along the way, officials said, but earlier Wednesday, a spokesman for
the Chinese climbers said two of three damaged camps had been repaired
and mountaineers were on the way to fix the third.
China's official television network, CCTV, broadcast dramatic live
images from nearby peaks of the climbers making their way up the steep
side of the 8,848-meter (29,030-foot) mountain, as well as close-up
views of the climbers using ropes and spiked boots to secure their
footing on the treacherous slope.
Two groups climbed to the summit: a 12-person team of torchbearers and a
supplemental seven-person pickup team, officials said. The team of about
50 includes 31 climbers along with coaches, advisers and other support
staff members.
The flame is burning in a lantern designed to protect it from low-oxygen
conditions of the high altitude.
The main Olympic flame began its three-month trek through China on
Sunday after a global torch relay.
Secrecy kept journalists at the base camp from knowing when the summit
attempt might begin. Tight security surrounds the mountain to prevent
any anti-Chinese and pro-Tibet protests.
The climbers needed four to six days of good weather to climb to the
summit and return, officials said.
Despite the secrecy ahead of the effort, elaborate technical plans are
in place so that CCTV can broadcast the ascent live.
More...
|
