“A world that is now part of my life” – Liberation

A season in the mountainsdossierSophie Lavaud entered the club of mountaineers having succeeded in climbing the 14 highest peaks in the world, in the Himalayas. She looks back on her journey that began eleven years ago.

This Monday, June 26, 2023 at 9:15 a.m. (local time), by reaching the summit of Nanga Parbat (ninth highest mountain in the world which culminates at 8,126 meters in Pakistan) after more than twelve hours of ascent, the Franco-Swiss and Canadian Sophie Lavaud, has come to the end of her challenge: to climb the fourteen summits of more than 8000 m of the globe. She thus completes her Himalayan grand slam, a project started more than ten years ago (with the Shishapangma (8013 meters) and the Cho Oyu (8188 meters) in 2012.

A journey that allowed her to enter the small club of great summitters and to become “THE” first Frenchman to have climbed the fourteen peaks, the first Swiss and “THE” first Canadian.

In what state of mind are you after this broken record?

We are back in Islamabad after a month and a half of expedition, but all is well. I’m starting to savor what’s happening on this latest expedition. I had taken oxygen. It’s rough, the Nanga Parbat. I always take oxygen beyond the last camp, for the summit part. Even if it’s on a low volume, it helps to energize circulation, and prevent frostbite. It’s a crutch.

How did the idea of ​​attempting the fourteen 8,000 come about?

This desire to climb the fourteen came gradually. It’s not a challenge that I set out to achieve, it happened at the end of the course of three expeditions. It was a big, unattainable dream. Fourteen peaks is a lot! They were made in 22 expeditions. It doesn’t always work; it’s like a play, when the curtain falls, you have to start all over again. Each of these mountains has its specificity. It depends so much on the conditions. Everest or K2, reputed to be the hardest, are very special moments. Annapurna remains a mythical summit…

It’s dangerous to go up there. You must be aware. I have a very professional team, I surrounded myself in the best possible way. No risk does not exist.

When taking stock of these eleven years: no injury, frostbite or evacuation. The results are very positive. It’s good that it’s over. Don’t push the envelope too far. It is now a world that is part of my life. I’m not going to stop overnight, and savor what just happened. The Earth is vast, I have lots of ideas for other expeditions in my head, I will soon miss it. It’s a big book that closes. It’s good to move on and open a new one… For sure, this experience transforms a life. But it’s too early to analyze it, I don’t really realize.

As a woman, you have set a new record. How does that count?

It’s not in relation to me… Women, in general, put up a lot of barriers for themselves, or they have some! If my story can inspire and [aider à] realize other dreams, it will be part of the bet that will be won! I’m very happy with that. I don’t know if I climb differently but I have a way of approaching big expeditions where I doubt. I’m never sure to get to the top. You have to stay very modest, it’s really one step after another, enjoying the moment, rather than coveting… It’s also a different way of approaching things. Knowing how to give up is part of it. There were lots of different scenarios. The earthquake in Nepal in 2015, an avalanche in K2. We lost the equipment in Dhaulagiri. Sometimes the weather conditions were bad, elsewhere there were not enough ropes. It doesn’t always work, otherwise it would be known (laughs).

And now ?

We’ll see. Lots of things are planned. A film, and a book in preparation (with François Damilano and Ulysse Lefebvre accompanying him) But in the coming days, we’re going to go for a walk at the foot of K2 to share this with friends…