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    Back to To the Point

    To the Point

    Sir Edmund Hillary, First to Reach Top of Everest, Dead at 88

    Since the first ascent of the world's highest mountain on May 29, 1953, more than 4000 people have climbed Mt. Everest. But the first two did it with equipment that would now be considered primitive. Tibetan guide Tenzing Norgay died in 1986. Sir Edmund Hillary died today in New Zealand at the age of 88.

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    By Warren Olney • May 12, 2014 • 1 min read

    Since the first ascent of the world's highest mountain on May 29, 1953, more than 4000 people have climbed Mt. Everest. But the first two did it with equipment that would now be considered primitive. Tibetan guide Tenzing Norgay died in 1986. Sir Edmund Hillary died today in New Zealand at the age of 88. When he returned home after climbing Mt. Everest, Hillary was knighted by Queen Elizabeth. A 20th Century pioneer, along with Charles Lindbergh and Neil Armstrong, was Hillary the first man to stand at the crest of the Himalayas at 29,000 feet? Eric Simonson is co-owner of International Mountain Guides, which leads groups up Everest.

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    2. 7:46Presidental Politics and the Promise of Change
    3. 44:56Sir Edmund Hillary, First to Reach Top of Everest, Dead at 88You’re reading this
    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Warren Olney

      former KCRW broadcaster

    • KCRW placeholder

      Eric Simonson

      Co-Owner, International Mountain Guides

      NewsNationalPolitics

    The full episode

    3 of 3
    Presidental Politics and the Promise of Change
    1. 1:39Is the US Economy Sliding into Recession?
    2. 7:46Presidental Politics and the Promise of Change
    3. 44:56Sir Edmund Hillary, First to Reach Top of Everest, Dead at 88You’re reading this
    Back to To the Point