13 May 2002 Xixabangma Expedition 2002 Team Launched Summit Bid
Mok Pulls Out Of Team Due
To Broken Ribs
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Singapore
- 13 May 2002 - The Singapore
Xixabangma Expedition mountaineers launched their bid to summit
the 8,027m Tibetan mountain in alpine style yesterday (Sunday,
12 May 2002).
They will be carrying all their tent, equipment,
clothes, food and fuel in 35kg ruck sacks and will climb the
mountain without any external help from sherpas, pre-fixed
ropes or pre-built camps. This style of climbing, relying
only on themselves, is considered the purest form of mountaineering.
The Singapore team, if successful, will be the first in South-east
Asia to accomplish this feat on a 8,000m mountain.
After a month at the mountain's advanced
base camp and a week of acclimatisation, the climbers have
adapted their bodies up to 7,300m, the most important part
of their preparation. "Now, the main obstacles are the
weather and the condition of the snow at the top," said
team leader and aeronautical engineer Dr Robert Goh, 36. "The
weather has been so bad in recent weeks that to date, none
of the teams here-and there are about 10 teams from around
the world-has summitted yet. And we are the only team doing
it alpine style, which shows how tough our climb is going
to
be."
Said his climbing mate, Outward Bound instructor
and the first member of 'Singapore's team to summit Everest
in 1998, Edwin Siew, 32, "For me, this is the biggest
challenge in all my years of mountaineering."
A third climber in the team, expedition
doctor Dr Mok Ying Jang has pulled out of the summit bid because
of two broken ribs. It was caused by violent coughing from
a bout of cold-induced asthma. Said a disappointed Dr Mok:
"I decided to pull out because I won't be able to carry
the 35-kg rucksack with this pain in my chest. Also, if anything
should happen to me up there because of my broken rib, it
would jeopardise the entire expedition."
Dr Goh does not expect the reduction of
the team by one to have adverse effect on the climb. "We
had to adjust our gear such as taking a two-man tent instead
of a three-man tent and cutting down on the amount of food
and fuel. But Ed and I climb very well together; we understand
each other in terms of style and speed, so I don't expect
any problems.
"We are just disappointed that Mok
won't be with us at the crucial moment, after training together
for two long years."
The climb is expected to take six
to eight days. The tentative summit date is Thursday, 16 May,
depending on weather conditions. Should the team fail to summit,
they will return to Advanced Base Camp and wait for another
window in the weather to make a second bid. The team has up
to the end of May, which is the end of the Spring climbing
season, to climb the mountain.
About Xixabangma
Expedition 2002
The Singapore Xixabangma Expedition from March to May 2002
aims to stretch the limits of high altitude mountaineering
by Singapore mountaineers. The team plans to climb into the
death zone (8,000m) without using supplementary oxygen and
without depending on pre-built camps or any other external
support, a style known as the Alpine Ascent.
The aims of the Expedition in climbing
Xixabangma are:
To raise mountaineering in Singapore
to a higher level
To increase awareness and broaden the
scope of high altitude mountaineering
To promote a healthy and balanced lifestyle
The Expedition is endorsed by:
Singapore Mountaineering Federation
Singapore Sports Council and the National
Youth Council
To date, the sponsors of the Expedition
include:
Singapore Pools
Singapore Power
NTUC Income
Singapore Sports Council, Timberland
GlaxoSmithKline
Weber Shandwick Singapore
Safra
National Computer Systems
DSO National Laboratories
NERA Telecommunications
Shell Solar
FotoHub
WL Gore
Xantic and Zen Vision (Oakley products).
This project is also made possible by a
Youth Development Fund grant from the National Youth Council.
——————————————————————————————— For further information:
Angelina Ong Weber Shandwick Worldwide, Singapore
Tel: 825 8031
Fax: 720 8102
Email: aong@webershandwick.com
