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Simone Moro: Never gives up

Feb 18, 2005 17: 59 EST
Previously published Feb 17, 2005 16:24 EST

Before Simone Moro, only Polish climbers had made first calendar winter ascents of the world's 8000ers. This year, Simone changed that when he and Piotr Morawski summited Shisha Pangma January 14 at 1.15 pm (local) after a fast 5 hour climb in very strong winds. This was the first virgin calendar winter climb of a 8000+ mountain since 1988, and the first ever made by a non-Polish climber.

Few dare the biggest mountains in the darkest hours

There is a reason why so few climbers attempt the biggest mountains in their darkest hours. It's said that only the Polish, and perhaps some Russians can do it - because they are used to suffering from home. Kukuczka was a prime example: Who else but a poor coal miner from communist Poland would have the courage and determination needed to scale the alpine giants in the coldest of winters and hurricane winds, and to do it time and again - in record speed?

The extreme cyber climber

That's why Italian Simone came as a surprise. He respected the rules of the veterans; he climbed the mountain without excuses, coming back when he failed the first time, but never compromised his goal and commitment.

Another unusual feature of Simone is that he managed to work technology throughout the climb. One of the reasons Simone enjoys the rare opportunity to be on a standing payroll from his sponsors - many of them loyal to him over the past 10 years - is his ability to let us follow his climbs in cyber space. His daily updates (in five languages) and crisp, live pictures provide a fascinating peak into the world of mountaineering. Yet make no mistake about it: Simone is not your average media climber, dragging along film crews and photographers to shoot him in pretty poses against sunny walls. Simone does the work himself - for his sponsors. So who is the guy, really?

Climbing in a garage

Born in 1967, Simone has been an Alpine guide, athlete, federal instructor and from 1992-1996, he trained Italy’s national sport climbing team (F.A.S.I.).

He started climbing at 13 and was later introduced to the vertical world through sport climbing. It didn’t take him long to attain 8b/8b+ degree in difficulty (UIAA graduation) and start winning competitions. But the long training sessions at the climbing wall bored him. “It was like climbing in a garage,” he said. “I missed the real walls and the real mountains.”

Try and try again

In search of greater challenges, he went for the greatest. In 1992, Simone Moro attempted Everest, although he didn’t summit on his first try. He would return later for the top of the world.

Simone Moro’s first big success - but still no summit - was the 8516m climb up Lhotse in 1994, which took him only 17 hours, leaving from 6330m. Unfortunately, weather forced him to turn back only meters from the summit.

Going lower, but faster

In 1996 Simone climbed and descended Fitz Roy’s 3341m west wall through the difficult ‘Supercanaleta’ route in a total of 25 hours. In 1999 he summited the four mountains over 7000m (Lenin, Korjenewska, Kommunism and Khan Tengri) in the former Soviet Union in only 38 days. Four days later, he nearly made Pobeda, but missed the summit by only a few hundred meters.

Without oxygen, Simone climbed the South summit of Shisha Pangma (8008m) from BC and skied down from 7100 meters - all in only 27 hours.

Returning to the big ones - and the first 8000+ summit

In 1997, along with Anatoli Boukreev, Simone returned to Lhotse. He summited the 4th highest mountain in the world without oxygen on May 26. This is when he caught the desire for winter. The plan was to attempt the first winter summit of Annapurna’s south wall in December. The climb was aborted when Boukreev died in an avalanche.

A spectacular near summit

The new millennium brought Simone success on Everest, as well as other giants. He summited Everest in 2000, from Nepal and in 2002, from Tibet. He would also summit Cho Oyu and Vinson in 2002.

Despite his many successful summits, it was a ‘near-summit’ that made Simone famous. While attempting the Lhotse/Everest traverse in 2001 along with Denis Urubko, he rushed to the rescue of a stranded climber, Briton Tom Moores, while Denis went to help an exhausted Polish lady climber who was clipped on the fixed ropes but unable to move. Simone left the tent into the Himalayan night and climbed up the Lhotse wall to 8000 meters high. Simone found Moores in a state of shock and helped him back down to the tent he and Denis were using, gave him his sleeping bag, and looked after him through the night. Afterwards, Simone was too tired to launch the traverse attempt. Denis, still strong, would summit Lhotse but renounced to go on without his mate.

Awards to a fair player

The world embraced Simone for his bravery. He received numerous awards, including the Pierre de Coubertin ‘Fair Play’ trophy from UNESCO, the Civilian Gold Medal of Valor from Italian president Ciampi, and the prestigious David A. Sowles award from the American Alpine Club.

The 2003 dream-team

In 2003, Simone joined an all-star climbing team which included Ed Viesturs, Iñaki Ochoa and Jean Christophe Lafaille. He climbed Broad Peak in less than 30 hours, to meet Lafaille and Viesturs on the summit -they had started climbing one day before. Then he opened a new Route on Nanga Parbat’s Diamir face along with Jean Christophe Lafaille. The route climbs up to 7100, where it joins the Kinshofer route. Simone opened the route and fixed ropes on the Kinshofer route above it, but finally could not summit.

In 2004, Simone and Denis opened a new route on Khali Himal, the south summit of Baruntse, through the north face. Earlier that year, he had made a first winter attempt on Shisha Pangma, along with a Polish team. They wouldn’t make it the first time. But they tried again, and would succeed on January 14, after a fast 5 hour climb on the Yugoslavian route on the south face.

This was Simone’s fifth winter climb, after the previous attempt on Shisha, the tragic December attempt on Annapurna in 1997, as well as the successful climbs on Aconcagua and Cerro Mirador - new route in alpine style - in 1993, and on Marble Wall – the northernmost and coldest 6000er in Central Asia - in 2001 along with Denis Urubko.

Image of Simone, courtesy of Simone Moro

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