This spring the climber Alex Gavan (26 years old) tries to make the first Romanian ascent of Mount Everest without using oxygen mask.



The expedition began on March 31 and is expected to take about seventy days, the final ascent to the top being planned in the second half of May, after a long period of acclimation. The climb will start in Nepal, on the south side of the mountain on Hillary route. Between base camp (5300 m) and peak another four camps will be established at altitudes of 6000 m, 6400 m, 7200 m and last in the so-called "death zone" at 8000 m. The team will be, as usual, a small one, being completed by three friends. On mountain, Alex will join forces with Italian Simone la Terra who wants to climb the top of Lhotse (8516 m). Their route is common up to camp 3. Also, the base camp will have the support of Alex Kumar Rai (chef) and Lhakpa Sherpa (chef aid).

Last year, Alex did the first Romanian climbing on the mountain Makalu (8463 m - the fifth in the world) in the Himalayas, reaching peaks of three mountains over eight thousand feet in less than two years. Ascent was made without suplimentary oxygen and without the help of sherpas, like all Alex's climbing. Peak is considered one of the toughest in the world. In 2006, with the climb of Cho Oyu peak (8201 m, the sixth giant of the world), Alex became the youngest Romanian mountain climbers who climbed a mountain over 8,000 meters. On July 30, 2007, Alex climb the difficult Gasherbrum 1 (8068 m) in Pakistan and was a premiere for Romanian. For this accomplishment, Gavan was nominated by the Romanian Federation of Mountaineering and Climbing "Athlete of the Year in 2007 at altitude climbing". Also holds climber "Gold Medal for Sports" given by President of province of Navarra, Spain.

Worldwide there are 14 peaks over 8,000 meters, ranging between 8012 m (Sisha Pangma) and 8850 m (Mount Everest). All these peaks are located in Central Asia in the border region between Nepal, India, Pakistan and China in the Himalayas and Karakorum.