50th anniversary of the first successful ascent of an eight-thousander (Nanga Parbat) by Slovak climbers

€10 silver collector coin

There are myriad peaks and mountain ranges on the earth, but only 14 of them are more than 8,000 metres in height above sea level, all located in the Himalayan and Karakoram mountain ranges in Asia. It was there, a century ago, that expeditions from different nations began competing to be the first to conquer the eight-thousanders. In 1950 French climbers made the first conquest—Annapurna (8,091 m)—and in 1964 Chinese climbers summited the last unclimbed eight-thousander, Shishapangma (8,013 m). For geopolitical reasons, Czech and Slovak climbers were unable to take part in this race. In 1969, during a lull in political tensions, Slovak mountaineer Ivan Gálfy managed to organise the “Tatra Expedition to the Himalayas” with the goal of climbing Nanga Parbat (8,125 m). The expedition, however, did not achieve its objective. Two years later, the undeterred Gálfy put together another expedition consisting of 16 climbers, mostly from Slovakia. From May 1971 they worked tirelessly on preparing an ascent route, again via the Rakhiot Flank, and then on 11 July 1971 four climbers set out on the final ascent from the highest camp, at 7,600 m. Only two of them—Ivan Fiala and Michal Orolín—reached the main summit of Nanga Parbat. Their success triggered a wave of joy in Czechoslovakia, especially among the Slovak public, which reverberated for several years to come.