Edurne's website published the news yesterday. She climbed her 13th 8000er! Now she only needs Shisha Pangma to finish the 14! Nacho Orviz (8000er Nr. 5), Alex Txikon (7) and Asier Izaguirre (5) also summited and Portuguese climber João Garcia finished the 14! The four relevant tables are already updated in the Download section!

Original source

Sad News about Luca Vuerich, the companion of Nives Meroi and Romano Benet. He died yesterday after an avalanche in the Slovenian Alps. The original message you can find here!

Luca Vuerich ascended Gasherbrum II, Gasherbrum I and Broad Peak in 2003, Lhotse in 2004 and Manaslu in 2008. He was only 34 years old! 

Heartfelt condolences go to his family and friends!

Apart from the victims on the 8000ers, who are listed in the fatalities tables, several other climbers, who ascended 8000ers or high 7000ers before, died in 2009.

We had to say farewell to both first ascenders of K2 from Italy, to Achille Compagnoni (94) on May 13th and to Lino Lacedelli (83) on November 20th.

Also at home died Austrian climber Peter Fessler (48). He ascended Broad Peak in 1999, Gasherbrum I in 2004 and Manaslu in 2007. He was a member of Gerfried Göschl's Nanga Parbat expedition last summer, but sadly died on May 16th, before the expedition started.

The famous mountaineer and philosopher Arne Naess sr., who ascended Tirich Mir in 1950, died on January 12th also at home, aged 96.

On January 10th the young British climber Robert (Rob) Gauntlett, who ascended Everest in 2006, died in an avalanche in the French Alps, aged only 21!

Mick Parker (36) from Australia, who ascended Cho Oyu in 2003, Broad Peak in 2004, Gasherbrum I in 2007 and Makalu two weeks before, died in his hotel room in Kathmandu on June 4th.

Italian climber Giuliano de Marchi (62), who ascended Shisha Pangma in 1985 and Cho Oyu in 1988, died on June 5th on Antelao in the Dolomites.

Andrzej Marciniak (50) from Poland, who ascended Everest in 1989 and Annapurna I in 1996, died on August 7th on Posrednia Gran in the High Tatras.

Norwegian climber and adventurer Sven Gangdal (55), who ascended Everest in 1996, Shisha Pangma Central-Peak in 1999, Manaslu in 2002, Makalu in 2004 and Lhotse in 2006, died in a boat accident in Norway on September 13th.

Péter Csizmadia (37) from Hungary, who ascended Gasherbrum I in 2007, died together with three companions in an avalanche on Ren Zhong Feng (ca. 5820 m, South of the Minya Konka range) on October 22nd during a first ascent attempt. The mountain was thought to be 6079 m high, but during the successful first ascent from Danish climbers five weeks later the GPS measuring proved it wrong.

And last, but not least, Tomaž Humar (40), the strong climber from Slovenia, who ascended Annapurna I in 1995, Shisha Pangma in 2002 and Annapurna I East-Peak in 2007, died on Langtang Lirung on November 10th.

Hellmut Seitzl was the oldest Everest ascender from Germany since 1994 with 56 years and 333 days. In 2009 Alois Bogenschütz replaced him with 63 years and 339 days. Also the oldest British ascender of Everest was noted in 2009, when Ranulph Fiennes summited with the age of 65 years and 75 days. He replaced Hamish Fulton, who summited just two days earlier, aged 62 years and 302 days. Nikolai Cherni from Russia replaced his own record from 2005, when he already was the oldest Russian on top of Everest with 66 years and 176 days, on his ascent in 2009 he was 70 years and 167 days old.

Three new records on 8000er mountains were achieved in 2009. British climber Keith Kerr set a new record on Kangchenjunga with 57 years and six days, Taisuke Furukawa from Japan set a new record on Manaslu with 70 years and 246 days and finally Spanish climber Carlos Soria summited Gasherbrum I, aged 70 years and 179 days. Because the ascent from Boris Korshunov from Russia is disputed (he was 72 years and 32 days old then), possibly the oldest on Cho Oyu might be American climber Clifton Maloney (71 years, 344 days), who died sadly on descent of the mountain.