Did Messner Climb All 14 8,000 Meter Peaks

Speaking of stupid moves, here’s another one:

Some asshole sitting at his desk the south of Germany, (yes, that’s where I’m from, that’s why I get to call him an asshole) spends years pouring over GPS files and data to come to the conclusion that Reinhold Meisner (and many other mountaineers) didn’t actually reach the summits of the 8,000 meter peaks they climbed. So far so good. These climbers climbed before modern equipment and under crazy conditions, this could happen. But The Guinness Book of World Records picks up this and just attempts to change history on the fly.

Jack Stern for Outside has the full story:

Now, 38 years later, Messner has been stripped of his historic accolade. On September 26, the Guinness Book of World Records announced that it no longer recognized Messner as the first to climb all 14 8000ers. The company had followed the advice of German mountaineering consultant Eberhard Jurgalski, who has used GPS data and photographic records to argue that many mountaineers—including Messner—stopped short of reaching the actual highest points on some of these peaks. Jurgalski has been the leading chronicler of 8,000ers since he began work on the subject in 1981, but has never climbed any of the peaks himself. In 2022, his revised list discounted a number of mountaineers’ ascents, including Messner’s, and sent shockwaves through the high-altitude climbing community.

Many of the biggest voices in mountaineering, including Ed Viesturs have responded:

I truly believe that Reinhold Messner was the first person to climb all 14 8000ers and should still be recognized as having done so. He lead the way, not only in style, but also physically and psychologically, by climbing without supplemental oxygen. Other climbers, such as me, were able to follow in his footsteps by his inspiration. The original list of the 14 8000 meter peak climbers, as I always knew it, is still what I look to as truthful. I believe that Messner and the others did their utmost to climb these peaks to the true summits, to the best of thier abilities, given the conditions when they were there. I don’t think any of these climbers meant to be dishonest. Climbing mountains is a personal journey, and should not be about being on a list or setting records.

This is not some weird gatekeeping of the patriarchy and Jurgalski some kind of hero of the modern ‘woke movement’. This is a pea counter trying to get his 15 minutes of fame. And it’s bullshit and I’m glad everyone recognizes it. Everyone, except the Guinness Book of World Records, apparently.