K2 and Broad Peak Polish expedition

ISLAMABAD: A nine-member mountaineering expedition will leave for K-2 to mark the Polish presidential elections of 2010. The announcement was made at a press conference at the Polish embassy in Islamabad. Expedition leader Boguslaw Ogrodnik informed that the expedition will embark for Broad Peak within the next few days, after which they will move to K-2, and hoped to reach the summit of the second tallest mountain in the world by mid August.

K2, also known as Savage Mountain, has the 2nd highest fatality rate amongst the tallest peaks in the world. For every four people who have reached the summit, one has died trying. Only eight Polish climbers have previously scaled K-2.

The nine-member team which includes seven polish members is significant in that almost half the expedition members are women. The team also plans to shoot a documentary on the exploits of Polish female climbers through the course of their visit to Pakistan. The female members of the expedition are Anna Czerwinska, Kinga Baranowska, Tamra Stys and Patrycja Jonetzko.

This is the second European team to announce an expedition to K-2 in as many months.

An Italian team in partnership with the Alpine Club of Pakistan announced a cleaning expedition to K-2 last month which sought to reduce the impact of waste left behind by climbers through proper disposal. The Polish team has also vowed for the responsible clearance of their expedition waste during their voyage. Voting for a new president started on Sunday in Poland after the position was left vacant by the tragic and unexpected death of previous Polish President Lech Kazincsky in a plane crash in April earlier this year.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 21^st, 2010.