The French mountaineer Benjamin Védrines climbed the 8611-meter-high eight-thousander K2 solo and without artificial oxygen in a record time of 10 hours, 59 minutes and 59 seconds. He had waited 40 days in the base camp for the perfect conditions.
Benjamin Vedrines has fulfilled his dream and climbed the second highest mountain in the world in record time – alone, without bottled oxygen and in a continuous push. After starting from the base camp shortly after midnight on Sunday, he reached the summit of the K2.
Existing Fastest Known Time on K2 halved
Benjamin Védrines sums up his expedition in the Pakistani Karakoram Mountains as a rollercoaster of emotions: "There was the euphoria before the start of the expedition, the waiting in the base camp, the doubts in view of the difficult weather conditions, the last-minute imponderables and then the summit of K2."
The top French mountaineer waited a total of 40 days in the base camp until a weather window finally appeared that would allow a record attempt. He started from the base camp at 28:0 on July 12th. An incredible 10 hours, 59 minutes and 59 seconds later he was on the summit of K2. Védrines thus beat the previous record time of his compatriot Benoit Chamoux of 23 hours from 1986 by more than half.
K2: Symbolic ascent with flashbacks
"At an altitude of 8000 metres, I slowed down because I was very worried that I would experience the same situation as two years ago," says Benjamin Védrines. Back then, he collapsed while attempting to climb K2 in one day and was found unconscious by two other climbers.
A dramatic experience that kept coming back to the Frenchman during his most recent climb. "It was a very symbolic climb for me, and I looked at the sections that sometimes appeared in my flashes again with a clear mind: I was able to observe and understand better."
When I reached the summit, I have rarely felt so emotionally overwhelmed on a mountain.
Benjamin Vedrines
Ascent via southeast ridge
The Frenchman chose the route over the Abruzzi Spur for his speed record. Védrines had actually planned to take off from the summit in a paraglider after climbing K2. It is not yet known whether he was able to put this plan into action.
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Credits: Cover picture Benjamin Vedrines