Summiting Everest: How a Photograph Celebrates Teamwork at the Top of the World

Summiting Everest: How a Photograph Celebrates Teamwork at the Top of the World — page 9
Chapter Two A CRACK AT EVEREST After George Mallory and Sandy Irvine died on Everest in 1924 there were no more expeditions for almost a decade Another attempt by the British in 1933 was a failure with the team worn down by the altitude and hallucinating invisible companions and pulsating objects in the sky Other attempts during the 1930s got no higher But once World War II was over the British were ready to try for the summit again And they had a new route to try Earlier expeditions had climbed Everest from the north starting in Tibet But now with the shifting postwar political landscape Tibet was closed to outsiders On the other hand Nepal which had been closed to foreigners for decades was now opening its borders Members of an exploratory expedition thought the Everest summit could be approached from a new direction the south starting in Nepal But just as today an expedition could not climb Everest without a permit issued by the government in this case the government of Nepal Only one group was allowed on the mountain per year And it just so happened that a Swiss team had applied for a permit right before the British They had first crack at the summit If they succeeded they would receive the worldwide acclaim that came with being the first team to climb Everest Only if they failed would the British have a shot In 1952 the Swiss expedition began its trek up the mountain One of its members was a man who would soon have a very important place in history Tenzing Norgay He was a Sherpa a member of a Himalayan ethnic group living in Tibet and Nepal Sherpas have