Blizzard Delays Climber Ohs Quest for 14th Peak

By Park Si-soo

Staff Reporter

Climber Oh Eun-sun delayed her final push to conquer the summit of the 8,091-meter Annapurna due to strong winds and a blizzard, her agency said Sunday.

The Himalayan peak is the only mountain left for her to conquer to make new mountaineering history by becoming the first woman to scale the world's 14 highest mountains over 8,000 meters. She was supposed to scale the summit Sunday.

"There is a lot of wind and snow. So she returned to base camp," Park Eun-joo, a spokesman for her agency Black Yak in Seoul, told The Korea Times.

"Good weather is forecast from Monday. So she will climb up to the 6,400-meter-high third camp Monday and then attempt the summit Tuesday at the earliest." Depending on weather conditions, the date for the final push could be put off further.

An avalanche swept over some guides accompanying the Korean but no one was injured, according to the spokesman.

This is Oh's second attempt to scale Annapurna. She had to give up her first attempt last October due to a blizzard and thick fog.

Spain's Eduren Pasaban is in razor-thin competition with Oh for the coveted honor. The 36-year-old, who also has 13 of the world's highest mountains under her belt, is currently climbing the 8,027-meter Shisha Pangma in Tibet.

오, 안나푸르나 등정 이틀 연기

히말라야 8천ｍ 14좌 완등의 마지막 목표인 안나푸르나(8천91ｍ) 등정에 나선 여성 산악인 오은선대장이 기상 악화로 예정보다 이틀 늦은 27일 정상 공략에 나서기로 했다.

오은선 대장은 애초 일요일(한국시간) 안나푸르나 정상에 도전할 계획이었지만 현지 기상 여건이 좋지 않아 상황을 좀 더 지켜보기로 했다.