Who is the best mountaineer in the world right now? Top 10 ranked

To overcome such difficulties and embrace a life in the mountains, it takes a great deal of bravery to be one of the best mountaineers. To different people, the sport means different things. Style, independence, small groups, good lines, single pushes, and - for some - doing it all without oxygen are all important.

Mountaineering/mountain climbing became popular in the 18th and 19th centuries in Europe's Alps, and it has since spread to nearly every corner of vertically inclined terra firma. As a result, some climbers have achieved some of the greatest mountaineering feats of all time.

The best mountaineers in history

There is an extensive list of famous mountain climbers. Though it is difficult to imagine climbing without modern equipment and communication, some of them defied the odds and climbed one of the highest peaks. Read on to find out who the world's best are.

10. Andrew Lock

Andrew James Lock OAM, born December 26, 1961, is an Australian mountaineer. On 2 October 2009, he became the first Australian to climb all 14 "eight-thousanders" (peaks over 8,000 metres above sea level), and the 18th person in history to do so. He climbed 13 of the 14 (except for Mount Everest) without the use of bottled oxygen.

The Australian has six first Australian ascents and four solo ascents to his credit. Andrew received the Order of Australia Medal in 2011 for his contributions to mountaineering. In 1993, he made his first successful expedition to the Himalayan eight-thousanders, climbing Mount Godwin Austen.

9. Juanito Oiarzabal

Juan Eusebio Oiarzabal Urteaga, also known as Juanito Oiarzabal, is a well-known Spanish Basque mountaineer who was born on March 30, 1956. He was the sixth person to reach all 14 eight-thousander summits, and the third to do so without the use of supplemental oxygen.

Oiarzabal was the first person to climb the top three peaks twice (Everest, Mount Godwin Austen, and Kangchenjunga) and was the oldest climber to summit Kangchenjunga, at nearly 53, until Carlos Soria Fontan did so in 2014, at 75.

His success in the Himalayas is well-known, but what is less well-known is that before embarking on those ascents, he had amassed a curriculum that ranks among the best in Spain. He attempted ascents on all of Spain's mountain ranges via the most difficult routes. He even discovered some important routes.

He has extensive experience climbing the Alps, primarily for the technical challenges they present. He has climbed on other continents, including North America, South America, and Africa, but returning to the Himalayas allows him to carry out his expeditions with the greatest ease, which may seem obvious after 35 expeditions over 23 years.

8. Silvio Mondinelli

In 2007, the Italian mountaineer became the 13th person to climb all 14 eight-thousanders. He is the sixth person to do so without the use of supplemental oxygen. He was 49 years old when he completed the final of 14 summits, a task he began in 1993 and completed in 2007.

Mondinelli began his climbing career by climbing several Alps peaks, particularly Monte Rosa. He became an Alpine Guide in 1981 and worked as a guide instructor from 1987 to 1991. The Italian began climbing mountains outside of Europe in 1984, primarily in North and South America, the Himalayas, and the Karakorum.

7. Carlos Carsolio

Carlos Carsolio Larrea is a Mexican mountain climber who was born on October 4, 1962, in Mexico City. Carsolio is best known for being the fourth man (and the first non-European) and the second youngest to climb all 14 of the world's eight-thousander mountain peaks without the use of supplemental oxygen (but he required emergency oxygen on his descent from Makalu in 1988).

Carsolio climbed his first eight-thousander with Jerzy Kukuczka, considered by some to be the world's best high-altitude climber. On July 13, 1985, he also climbed Nanga Parbat with a Polish expedition led by Pawel Mularz.

6. Lino Lacedelli

Lino Lacedelli, an Italian mountaineer, and Achille Compagnoni were the first to reach the summit of Mount Godwin-Austen on July 31, 1954. He trained under the supervision of one of the best Dolomite rock climbers Luigi ‘Bibi’ Ghedina, in his teenage days. Lacedelli gained international attention with his second ascent of the Grand Capucin's east face of Bonatti-Ghigo.

In 1951, he accomplished this in just 18 hours with Bibi Ghendina. Together with experienced climber Achille Compagnoni, they made the first successful ascent of Mount Godwin Austen via the Abruzzi Ridge on July 31, 1954. In 2005, he received Italy's highest honour, the Knight of the Grand Cross.

Aside from his active mountain climbing career, he also authored two best-selling books on mountaineering, "The Mountains of My Life" in 1995 and "K2: The Price of Conquest" in 2004. Lacedelli died on November 20, 2009, at the age of 83, in Cortina d'Ampezzo.

5. Reinhold Messner

Reinhold Andreas Messner, born September 17, 1944, is a South Tyrolean mountaineer, explorer, and author. He made the first solo ascent of Mount Everest, as well as the first ascent of Everest without the use of supplemental oxygen, with Peter Habeler.

He was the first person to climb all fourteen peaks above 8,000 metres (26,000 feet) above sea level without using oxygen. Messner was also the first person to travel across Antarctica and Greenland without using snowmobiles or dog sleds. He also crossed the Gobi Desert alone and is widely regarded as one of the world's greatest mountaineers alive.

4. Tenzing Norgay

The Nepali-Indian Sherpa mountaineer is also considered to be one of the best of all time. He was one of the first two people to reach the summit of Mount Everest, which he did on May 29, 1953, with Edmund Hillary.

At the age of 20, Norgay was offered his first chance to join an Everest expedition when Eric Shipton assembled the 1935 British Mount Everest reconnaissance expedition. In the 1930s, Norgay worked as a high-altitude porter on three official British attempts to climb Everest from the northern Tibetan side. He also participated in other climbs throughout the Indian subcontinent.

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3. Sir Edmund Hillary

He was a mountaineer, explorer, and philanthropist from New Zealand. Hillary and Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers to reach the summit of Mount Everest on May 29, 1953. They were part of John Hunt's ninth British expedition to Everest.

From 1985 to 1988, he was New Zealand's High Commissioner to India and Bangladesh, as well as the country's Ambassador to Nepal. During WWII, he was a navigator in the Royal New Zealand Air Force and was injured in an accident.

He reached the South Pole overland in 1958 as part of the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition. He then reached the North Pole, becoming the first person to do so. Time named him one of the 100 most influential people of the twentieth century, and he is regarded as one of the best mountaineers of all time.

2. Józef Jerzy Kukuczka

Józef Jerzy Kukuczka was a Polish alpinist and mountaineer. On September 18, 1987, he became the second man in history (after Reinhold Messner) to climb all fourteen eight-thousanders in less than eight years. He is the only person in the world who has climbed two world's eight-thousanders in the same winter.

In total, he climbed four eight-thousanders during the winter, three of which were first ascents. Kukuczka and Tadeusz Piotrowski pioneered a new alpine route on K2 (the so-called "Polish Line") that has never been repeated. He was born on March 24, 1948 in Katowice, Poland, and passed away on October 24, 1989 in Lhotse, Nepal.

1. Nirmal Purja

Is Nims the best mountaineer in the world? Born on 25 July 1983 in Nepal, he is a naturalised British who holds numerous world records. Before embarking on a mountaineering career, he served in the British Army with the Brigade of Gurkhas, followed by the Special Boat Service (SBS), the Royal Navy's special forces unit.

Purja is famous for climbing all 14 eight-thousanders in a record time of six months and six days using bottled oxygen. He was also the first person to reach the summits of Mount Everest, Lhotse, and Makalu all within 48 hours. He is one of the world's best mountaineers.

Mountaineering is one of the toughest sports in the world. However, the best mountaineers have defied the odds and achieved one of the best feats in the sport.

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