19 July

Born on this day

1914 Jean Franco, French climber, who was part of the second successful rope on Makalu in 1955. He died in a car crash in 1971, aged 57.
1944 Toshitaka Sakano, Japanese climber, who ascended Kumbhakarna (Jannu) in 1976 and Kangchenjunga in 1980. In 1982 he was a member of a K2 expedition and died by a fall from the top of a hill before the return march, aged 38.
1954 Donald O'Connor, South African climber, who ascended Cho Oyu in 2012.
1957 Patrick Bérhault, French climber, who ascended Shisha Pangma in 1988 and Everest in 2003. He died in 2004 by a fall in the Alps, aged 46.
1959 Stuart Gregory Smith, American climber, who ascended Cho Oyu in 2000, Gasherbrum II in 2001, Everest in 2002, Lhotse in 2008, Manaslu RP in 2013 and Makalu in 2014. He also finished the Kosciuszko-version of the Seven Summits in 2003.
1959 Roland de Bare de Comogne, Belgian climber, who ascended Cho Oyu in 2004 and Everest in 2006.
1959 Vladimir Khilko, Russian climber, who ascended Dhaulagiri I in 1995.
1959 Rudolf Klingl, German climber, who ascended Cho Oyu in 1983.
1960 Ivan Urbanovič jr., Slovak climber, who ascended Gasherbrum I in 1988.
1961 Tsutomu Arakawa, Japanese climber, who ascended Everest and Lhotse in 2017.
1962 Alan Millard, British climber, who ascended Manaslu RP in 2010 and Everest in 2011.
1962 Mark James Hughes, South African climber, who ascended Everest in 2012.
1964 Luc Hoornaert, Belgian climber, who ascended Cho Oyu in 2000.
1965 Thomas Steffen, German climber, who ascended Manaslu RP in 1995.
1965 Aleksandr Chesnokov. Russian climber, who ascended Cho Oyu in 2007.
1968 Peter Cunningham Brittleton, British climber, who ascended Everest in 2008 and K2 in 2022.
1969 Juan Antonio Olivieri, Spanish Balearic climber, who ascended Cho Oyu in 2004 and Everest in 2006.
1969 Richard Howard (Dick) Gale, British climber, who ascended Everest in 2017.
1971 Anna-Charlotta Josefina Persson, Swedish lady climber, who ascended Everest in 2022.
1973 Piotr Marek Cieszewski, Polish climber, who ascended Everest in 2013.
1975 Nima Kancha I, Nepalese Sherpa climber, who ascended Everest ten times (2006, 2009, 2012, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2023 and 2024), Manaslu RP three times (2013, 2015 and 2018), Cho Oyu in 2016 and Manaslu M in 2024.
1977 Michael Aaron Hamill, American climber, who ascended Cho Oyu eight times (2002, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2011, 2013, 2014 and 2016) and Everest six times (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2016).
1978 Chompel, Indian climber, who ascended Everest in 2012.
1982 Kristīne Kravcova, Latvian lady climber, who ascended Manaslu RP in 2011.
1982 Dawa Finjhok, Nepalese Sherpa climber, who ascended Everest in 2023.
1985 Li Gao, Chinese climber, who ascended Everest twice (2018 and 2021), Lhotse and Makalu in 2019, Annapurna I in 2021, K2 twice (2022 and 2024), Broad Peak in 2022 and Nanga Parbat, Gasherbrum I and Gasherbrum II in 2023.
1985 Hiroki Hosaka, Japanese climber, who ascended Manaslu RP in 2018.
1985 Olga Tapordei, Moldovian lady climber, who ascended Everest in 2021.
1987 Louis Edouard Bernard Jammes, French climber, who ascended Everest twice (2023 and 2024) and Lhotse in 2024.
1988 Dawaonguck, Nepalese Sherpa climber, who ascended Everest twice (2022 and 2023) and Lhotse in 2022.
1989 Bi Yang-Guang, Chinese climber, who ascended Manaslu M in 2023.
1994 Manisha Payal, Indian lady climber, who ascended Everest in 2019.
1996 Deepak Madhusudan Patidar, Indian climber, who ascended Everest in 2017.
2000 Manohar Gopal Hilim, Indian climber, who ascended Everest in 2019.
2006 Huang Ke-Xin, Chinese lady climber, who ascended Cho Oyu in 2023.

First ascents on this day

1959 Kanjut Sar I (7760 m) by an Italian party.
1979 Latok I (7145 m) by a Japanese party.
1982 Kuk Sar I (6943 m) by a British party.
1987 Gyadung (6160 m) and Geling (c. 6100 m) by an Indian party.
1994 Karpogo Sar I (aka Kezhen, 7038 m) by a Japanese party.
2013 Kunyang Chhish East (ca. 7400 m) by an Austro-Swiss party.

Gone on this day

1374 Francesco Petrarca, Italian poet, who was seen as the "Spiritual Father of Alpinism" after he ascended Mont Ventoux and wrote about it. He died one day before his 70th birthday.
1990 Andreas Reinhard, Swiss climber, who ascended Broad Peak in 1984, died by a fall on Mönch, aged 41.
2005 Merab Khabazi, Georgian climber, who ascended Everest in 1999, died on Ushba, aged 44.
2011 Ivan Gálfy, Slovak climber and expedition leader, who ascended Tirich Mir in 1967. He also led the expeditions to Nanga Parbat in 1969 and 1971, to Makalu in 1973 and 1976, to Jannu in 1979 and 1981, to Kangchenjunga in 1981, to Lhotse Shar in 1984 and to Everest in 1987. He died on this day, aged 78.
2021 Kim Hong-Bin, Korean climber, who ascended Gasherbrum II and Shisha Pangma in 2006, Everest in 2007, Makalu in 2008, Dhaulagiri I in 2009, Cho Oyu in 2011, K2 in 2012, Kangchenjunga in 2013, Manaslu RP in 2014, Lhotse and Nanga Parbat in 2017, Annapurna I in 2018, Gasherbrum I in 2019 and Broad Peak in 2021, where he died on descent, aged 56. He also finished the Kosciuszko-version of the Seven Summits in 2009.