2016 Nanga Parbat Historic First Winter Ascent Expedition

Pakistan🏔️ 8 Peaks

Muhammad Ali Sadpara

Muhammad Ali Sadpara was born on February 2, 1976, in Sadpara village near Skardu in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. Like his fellow villagers, Ali began his working life as a porter carrying expedition freight through the Baltoro Glacier. With a naturally joyous temperament, a legendary work ethic, and extraordinary lung capacity, Ali quickly stood out. By 2004, he had transitioned from low-altitude load carrying to professional high-altitude climbing, guiding international expeditions across the Karakoram. Ali Sadpara earned the title 'The King of Nanga Parbat' through an unmatched mastery of the 'Killer Mountain'. He summited Nanga Parbat (8,126m) four separate times: in 2008, 2009, 2016, and 2017. His crowning international achievement occurred on February 26, 2016. Alongside Spanish climber Alex Txikon and Italian alpinist Simone Moro, Ali completed the historic first winter ascent of Nanga Parbat via the Kinshofer Route, solving one of Himalayan mountaineering's greatest and most perilous winter riddles after decades of failed international attempts. Over his career, Ali summited eight 8,000-meter peaks: Gasherbrum II (2006), Nanga Parbat (four times: 2008, 2009, 2016 winter, 2017), Gasherbrum I (2013), Broad Peak (2017), K2 (2018), Lhotse (2019), Makalu (2019), and Manaslu (2019). Throughout these climbs, he was revered by international alpinists for fixing miles of dangerous ropes, rescuing distressed climbers, and singing Balti folk songs at 8,000 meters to keep morale high. In January and February 2021, Ali embarked on a daring winter ascent of K2 (8,611m) alongside his son Sajid Ali Sadpara, Icelandic climber John Snorri, and Chilean alpinist Juan Pablo Mohr. On February 5, 2021, after Sajid was forced to turn back from the Bottleneck due to an oxygen regulator failure, Ali, Snorri, and Mohr pushed into the high Death Zone toward the summit. They never returned. Following an extensive military aerial search in hurricane-force winds, the trio was declared deceased on February 18, 2021. In July 2021, Sajid Sadpara discovered their bodies above Camp IV near the Bottleneck and laid his father to rest in the high ice of K2. Muhammad Ali Sadpara was posthumously decorated with Pakistan's prestigious Sitara-i-Imtiaz and remains a beloved national hero whose fearlessness and radiant spirit inspire millions worldwide.

Italy🏔️ 5 Peaks

Simone Moro

Born on October 27, 1967, in Bergamo, Italy, Simone Moro began rock climbing in the Bergamasque Alps at age thirteen. After qualifying as an instructor and mountain guide, he turned his focus to the Greater Ranges, pioneering lightweight alpine tactics on extreme Himalayan faces. In an era when most major high-altitude triumphs took place in pre-monsoon summer, Moro became the defining force behind the revival of winter eight-thousander expeditions. On January 14, 2005, Moro and Polish partner Piotr Morawski achieved the historic first winter ascent of Shishapangma (8,027m). He followed this triumph on February 9, 2009, by teaming with Denis Urubko to claim the first winter ascent of Makalu (8,485m), enduring temperatures lower than -40°C. In February 2011, Moro, Urubko, and Cory Richards completed the first winter ascent of Gasherbrum II (8,035m), surviving a catastrophic avalanche during their descent. On February 26, 2016, Moro etched his fourth winter summit into history by reaching the top of Nanga Parbat (8,126m) with Alex Txikon and Muhammad Ali Sadpara. In addition to his winter summits, Moro is an accomplished commercial helicopter pilot who has performed numerous record-breaking high-altitude rescues in the Himalayas, including the Fair Play Pierre de Coubertin World Trophy awarded after he aborted his 2001 Lhotse ascent at 8,000 metres to save British climber Tom Moores in darkness.