Reinhold Messner

Reinhold Messner (born 1944) is an Italian climber, explorer and author from the German-speaking province of South Tyrol, widely considered the greatest high-altitude mountaineer of all time. He made the first solo ascent of Mount Everest and, with Peter Habeler, the first ascent of Everest without supplementary oxygen, and he was the first person to climb all 14 eight-thousanders, also without bottled oxygen. He was the first to cross Antarctica and Greenland without snowmobiles or dog sleds and also crossed the Gobi Desert alone. Born in St. Peter, Villnöß near Brixen, he has published more than 80 books about his experiences, served as a member of the European Parliament for north-east Italy from 1999 to 2004, received the Piolet d'Or Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010 and shared the Princess of Asturias Award for Sports in 2018.