1961-10-10 — Page 97

They conquered the GEORGE WRITING BOXING

mystery mountain

BUT WHAT A PRICE

THEY PAID

By FRANK WRIGHT

They were alone in a fantastic crystal world. Clouds drifted far beneath them, halfway down the stark procipices that sheared away frighteningly into nothingness.

But they had no oxygen cylinders, and the altitude was already making clear thought difficult. Worst of all, numb hands and feet told them that frost-bite was already a serious danger.

-What will you do if i go back?" asked Louth Lehenal, the tomoax French guide.

Mourley Herzog, leader of this ernck French exprelition, remembered for a moment their gruelling

reach it. There was no previous climbers lore to guide them.

A reconnaissance party managed at last, to find a way in through steep jungle garges, and un grent rocky prominunees. It was dizzy, tricky going; but it led them at last to the glacial

basin at Annapurna's foot.

They

The wasted no time. main party followed at once, that was already

Then they had to work out, within days, a feasible apparel to s summit, över utterly un- known bizards of glacier, couloir and crevasse.

It was rare enough for moun- through taineers to conquer Ascunt

untrodden sweltering Nepalesis Jungle; the peaks over 25,000 feet. even tive carefully-jald enige on the after years of detalled prepa- treacherous Himalayah susav- naissance and abortive attempts. Alpes where tough French This desperate bid had 10. be ellinbers and great-hearted made at once, with only days over Sherpas waited.

"I should go on by myself,"

le suid-

الله

to spare before the winter saetff mountaineering test for melted and the monson arrived the heavily-tonded Sherpas, They established base comp and saw that the mountain's steep, ley inwer

Unique

In all the hermie anal of Herzug Himalayon adventure, victory of

and Enchenal recognisett al ready, their feat would stand

It was soiled. How could they give up now, with a sporting rhance only an heur or so altead? They woul

worry Jater whether it was

unique, worth the price. Lachenal know it as well as Berzog. They stumbled painfully utt.

Triple triumph

*1

And, Incredibly soon, a bitter wind tore at them as they slond lee-smooth pinnacle They had conquered 20.402-L Annapurna, the tenth highest mountain in the world.

their But

achievement June 3, 1950 meant much more than that.

of

They were the first men in history to tread a moitain peak

than 8,000

KUTC

meires

But Annapurna. had, yet exact her price. Their amazing andwal had hardly been.

The rager

reaches were

to be the toughest going by far. Higher up. The slope cased in a

mouth, gentle snowcap.

Hard as wood

taking

expetition had But now Herzog, the leader, and Lachenal had gained their hot even known that it ጌርና Annapurna they would tackle, Koal. And as they stood on the as they told weeks earlier summit through the hitherto forbidden Nepalese Jungle tracks that led to the high valleys.

photographs, they saw that already the wind was rising. Swirling inits were beginning to blat out the sun, There was not a second to lose.

They bad looked Prst at rai ft. Dhaulagiri. But on. The first disaster struck

had Tian-consuming Survey:

only a lttle way down. Lac failed to reveal any practicable henal noticed that Herzog's approach to her slopes-or any kanda were uncovered. His

of conquering her

gloves precious

were lost. was at af!

Powerless, he bad watched final terrible 250 feet.

Then, from the highest point them careering away down gained, they had seen in the the slopes ahead of bl. distance the dazzling mass of Was An open invitation to Annapurna. They would go for frost-bite. that instead.

Then.. in the thick mist. A frat they coultin't even Herzog lost sight of Lachenal,

the cloud toente

approach to the and arrived alone. at the top wrapped mystery even to native mysterious mountain. The np.

incoherent Delight untives knew nothing of how to be gasped out the news of their

(26.247 ft) high.

Theirs who a triple triumph. First they had to fiel Anna- purna, marked misleadingly on official

and MADA

Sherpos.

Four D. Jones HAVING PASSED INROUGH BY MADDOCKS

FERDINAND

HIS HOOR JONES IS TRYING TO FIND HIS

WHEREABOLITS...

J MUST FIND SOMEONE AND EXPLAIN MY POSITION

W

THE FLUTTERS

HERE, STEADY ON. MATE!

YOU CAN'T GO MESSIN' ABOUT) 57

THIS IS A FREE COUNTRY:

WITH OUR PARTICULARS.

ON NEW

YEAR'S BVG

AN' ALL

LACK OF

INFORMATION LEAVES ME NO. CHOICE, GENTLEMEN

BRICK BRADFORD

HE LOOKS LIKE

AN OLD MAN, EKST

HE IS AS

STRONG AS

AN OX)

HE'S.COMING

AROUND

BRICK!

UNF

UNA

WHAT'S THIS ERE THEN,

MATEY? A STOWAWAY

I WAGER, STATE

YOUR BUSINESS

They were rushed towards what seemed certain death..

conquest. But hls colleagues

ttet:ústay and Terray were stair- ing at his Angers.

They were violet and white with cold, and hard as wood. And-where was Lachenal?

Risked his life

cally blind from

the sun'

"lare un the snow the day before,

Caviar at the funeral!

London.

Luckily, their shouts for help Big-time boxing, the good old punch panorama,

trom the rim of the crevasse were heard. by Marcel Scholz, who was already climbing up towards them frora, Camp Four, They set off again, in a bid to reach Comp Two and urgently needed medical help in one day, but before long a menacing crack appeared in the snowy where they stoul. It widened, as they watched,

·

A

reopens its thud-and-blunder shop Britain's next month, Swent, swipe and surtax are with us once ağáln. True, trade is not what it was. Irritated rugby forward, was There are probably fewer than recently damned with no praise

professional com- at, after falling to lilt 500. British milting commercial assaults,,, for mediocy American heavy- public entertainment these weight at Wembley. Neverthe- days, and the proportior nt less, our Dick is said to bave maigs to pugs le plafly descernt-i earned nearly £100,000 lnce blc.

he und his Jockey-sized hana- Another sign of thin times is ger. Wally Lesley, discovered that our stricken managers, after that delivering mlik offered in- dwelling for years in their own adequate scope for his talents. private

25 per cent Welfare

And if anyone should wish to certain Stute, now openly admit having

to go to work. Than which, of introduce a senwl to the other- course, there Was pice

niowie Immobile features of our

triple Kregler shame or degradation.

light-weight champion. Dave Charnley, just suggest that

Fantastic escape

And all at once Herzog, Rebuffat and two of the Sherpas nere caught sin in a terrible aralanche that rushed them to- wards what

seemed death.

Pantasticnily, the rape that joined them caught una ridge of re-and held against the luge strain. Herzog recovered consciousness to And himself hanging with the rope round his neck and one tex.

and

Somehow, they rallied renched Camp Two: by now plufully frast-bitten, show- blinded and dazed.

An affront

he goes the ring for glory Mr Charnley-"stone rich," a.3

However, Jet us, not weep, too! The intelligentaja put it-will freely for the stalwart fighting never Have to do any more men of these islands. The days boller-making. of poverty-ridelen ex-boxers eadging for "briefs" at the dressing-room door are a dead as Dickens,

Undfraid

un-

So, we face the future Ondoi, their skilful surgeon,

The Jenst skied of Jenst flinching, unstraid, securo In was awaiting them. In a dan hopeful part-time novices can the knowledite that cur great tent he tolled all night, Injecting

command £25 and upwards for British promoters will leave no agonisingly to stimulate falter six three-minute rounds per- blandŝaliment, unmentioned to ing circulation. matcoint. formance, and some of them encourage the noble, art dr'd amputating already-gangrenous | couldn't even hit an innocenti moké a bob or two out of the toe and finger joints.

great British public.

On the

next day Herzog and Lachenal, dow gravely ill, were lowered gehily 'down the

skis to base snowslopes on camp. The eata becarne grim, bloody surgical wards na the bâtile for Hte and frost- Belard Bombs was renewed.

Annapurna's price

nibs already clearly in the grip of trost-bile. Next day, in a binding blizzard, they realised a little further down that they the faithful Sherpes became the were lost.

Then a

new epic began; and To make matters

Patient and uncom fell into a heroes. worze Lachenai snow-filled crevasse. The climb plaining. they carried the l- ers realised that this was where Jured men tenderly and safely

able night.

A faint ery led them to they must spend another misert their backs along the rough," aside. He was clinging 10% his life to the bare slope on the edge of an abyss just below. He had slipped 300 fl., and lay con- custed and shocked, with badly frost-bilten eel. Terray, + first-class skier, risked his life le recover hlm.

They spent an anguished night in their tenta, massaging

SPEAK UP

MAN

bystander.

As for the top, boys, heavy- Let's make with the pica. weight chumpton Henry Cooper. OCTOBER 17, WEMBLEY- who used to plaster ceilings, Harry Levené "Proudly Presents would consider it an affront the Most Sensational Heavy- you offered him less than £10,000 weight Fight in Years"-be- to thrust his elegant left jab at tween Britain's Brian London a rated opponent in London. and America's Eddie, Machen. Indeed, Jim Wicks, his episcopal- within five minutes of the looking manager, would prob- Anal Bull, the winner will ably have you cast into outer challenge, Floyd Palterson, Jor darkness as a man of no under- the championship of the world standing of the finer things in and nobody will mind—leart life.

of all Patterson, European

Dick champion Richardson, who fights like an

Another Benaud coming up

Sydney, Oct. 0. Seventeen-year-old John

Pin money OCTOBER

23. NOTTING- HAM. Davē Charnley, on orders from the Boxlig Board of Control, defends his British, Empire

light- and European weight titles against Veteran Darkle Hughes for 60 per cent of a pin-money purse of £2,050. If. Hughes wins this one the Government will probably re sign.

frighteningly steep tracks that wound down for 10,000 terrible They lay huddled together feet into the valleys, to generale heat. Towards dawn, they heard a strange The porters were manhandling sali lax, and suddenly lay more than twice their ordinary smothered by an avalanche of long and by the time they got new snow. For a desperate Gown, the jungle valleys iny in) hour they groped, for their the grip of stifling monsoon heat | Benaud, younger brother of hoals -- and realised only and drenching rain. Yet still Australia's Test captain, Richie, how that they were practi.

they stumbled on with their is climbing the ladder to big pain-racked burdens: for an- cricket. cther interminable month, overį He has been chosen for the 200 cruel miles.

Cumberland Club's first grade Cullis, side in the Sydney District

Benaud is a batsman

SHEAFFER'S Imperial #

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By Mik

SWISSAIR

CONVAIR JETS, NOW SERVING HONG KONG

WHEEF

HAVE A BREAK

By Paul Norrla

I DIDN'T. DO THAT). I HAVENÍ BUEN IN THE CONTROL

TOWER IN FORTY YRAZZŠ 1 THE MAINZ BUTARI. ORDERED, YOU TO

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The Fastest Film

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ILFORD

younger

OCTOBER 26, LIVERPOOL--.. Chio Calderwood defends, the Bellish and Empire cruiser- weight titles ogainst Stan

Grudge hght, says promoter Micite

Fie Dug. And hopes so.

OCTOBER 31. WEMBLEY.--

SUTL

Every night, when they stop-competition. ped for rest, the mountaineers The had to face again the ordeal of legspinner, a bright further injections, further am- and abrillant feldsman John Caldwell defends filė cutalions.

China Mall Specall.

Annapurna's price, in the end, was all Lachenal's toes: all Maurice Herzog's fingers and his toes. Yet during the long

mondits +1 recovery. nelther would ever concede that their precious victory had bren too dear,

The French flog had flown over what was then the highest moun-

Sports Diary

TODAY Hockey 2nd Division: Buten HC v InKFC (HV) 0.45 pm.

НКВА meeting.

* Badminton Touchesnent Committco Kayatnally Dldg, lai floor,

Tenta

ini tamed, by man. Nothing 5.30 pi could ever deprive them of their Colony Hard Court Champion- mystical moment's experience in ships at CRC, 830 pm. that remote crystal world,

When Maurice Herzog later became France's Minister of Sport, it seemed the happiest possible tribute to a great sports man's eple Keat.

(All rights reserved)

TOMORROW

14

(European) half of the world bantam tie against Frenchman Alphonse Halimi. Despite the gash-over-the-eye gore.

I described their last Bight as

in boxing, restoring faith distinct from.riotous rubbish.

Promoter JACK SOLOMONS says he'll sue if I fall to point out that the encore will de even better,

riefee and with as much blood.

Boxing is supposed to be dead, but the above- mentioned practitioners will collect more than £20,000 October fees. Cavlar at the gain, funeral!

Whitfield Wanderers v RAP (ns, 4 pm; 14 Fd next v Brd San (18) em: 1. Warwicks Regt v Pailer (65) 6:15 pm. *

swimming

HK Lifeguards annual Victoria Park 2001, 4 pm,

-London Express Service),

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