Ed Viesturs
Edmund Viesturs (born June 22, 1959) is a high-altitude mountaineer, corporate speaker, and well known author in the mountain climbing community. He is the only American to have climbed all 14 of the world's eight-thousander mountain peaks, and the fifth person to do so without using supplemental oxygen. Along with Apa Sherpa, he has summitted peaks of over 8,000 meters on 21 occasions, including Mount Everest seven times; only four other climbers, Phurba Tashi Sherpa Mendewa, Juanito Oiarzabal, Namgyal Sherpa, and Ang Dorje Sherpa, have more high-altitude ascents. Viesturs took part in the 1996  IMAX filming of "Everest" shortly after the 1996 Mount Everest disaster, which became the highest grossing documentary up to that time. Thirteen days after the disaster, his team summited Everest accompanied by a film crew. He also had a cameo in the year 2000 Hollywood blockbuster "Vertical Limit". Clive Standen plays Viesturs in the 2015 remake of "Everest" telling of the 1996 Mount Everest disaster. Early life. Viesturs was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, of Latvian and German descent. He was raised in Rockford, Illinois, Viesturs moved to Seattle, Washington in 1977 to attend the University of Washington. It was  here that he began his mountaineering career on the slopes of Mount Rainier. Viesturs graduated from the University of Washington in 1981 with a BS in zoology and worked as a guide for Rainier Mountaineering. He later obtained a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Washington State University. Mountain climbing career. His interest in the Himalayas was sparked in high school by reading Maurice Herzog's account of the first climb of Annapurna, titled "Annapurna". After climbing Kangchenjunga in 1989, Mount Everest in 1990 and K2 in 1992, Viesturs became an international mountain guide and was sponsored for full-time  mountaineering. He served as a guide for Rob Hall's Adventure Consultants company during their 1995 Everest expedition. Viesturs climbs with Finnish partner Veikka Gustafsson. Viesturs has assisted other mountaineers several times. In 1992, he and fellow American Scott Fischer brought down French climber Chantal Mauduit, suffering from exhaustion, after her summit of K2. Viesturs was in the IMAX climbing team during the 1996 Everest Disaster. He was featured in David Breashears' documentary film "Everest" (1998), and filming was delayed as a blizzard struck. The IMAX team postponed shooting and followed Viesturs up the mountain to aid the stranded climbers . The team ultimately decided to keep going, and summitted Everest on May 23, 1996. Viesturs was also featured in the "Nova" television documentary, "Everest: The Death Zone" (1998), in which he and Breashears climbed Everest to the summit, while undergoing physical and mental tests to record the effects of altitude on humans. In July 2003, Viesturs and a Kazakh team, headed by Denis Urubko, were instrumental in the rescue of French climber Jean-Christophe Lafaille from Broad Peak. Lafaille had developed high-altitude pulmonary edema and was unable to complete his descent. They coordinated a rescue attempt in the dark , and were able to get Lafaille safely off the mountain and helicoptered out for medical help. In 2005, Viesturs became the first American, and 12th person overall, to summit all 14 mountains over 8,000 meters (collectively known as the eight-thousanders). He is the fifth climber to do it without supplemental oxygen. Viesturs also has summitted Mount Everest seven times. Viesturs' more recent climbs have included Broad Peak (the world's 12th highest mountain) and Nanga Parbat (the world's ninth highest mountain) in 2003, Annapurna (the world's 10th highest mountain) in 2005, and Mount Everest (for the seventh  time) in 2009. On July 8, 2009 he led an expedition to Mount Rainier as part of the United Way Climb for the Community effort. UCLA coach Jim Mora, Seahawks CEO Tod Leiweke, and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell took part in this charitable enterprise, summiting the 14,410 ft peak. Viesturs led an expedition to Antarctica, in January 2011, to climb its highest peak, Vinson Massif. In August 2011, he summitted Mount Rainier for the 208th time. Viesturs now acts as a guide for RMI Expeditions. Accomplishments. Viesturs is a recipient of the David A. Sowles Memorial Award (1992) from the  American Alpine Club. He is also the recipient of the Explorers Club Lowell Thomas Award (2001) He was named National Geographic's Adventurer of the Year (2005). On November 5, 2006, Viesturs completed his first marathon, the New York City Marathon, in 3:15:18. Other work. Viesturs was a cinematographer for the film "Trio for One" (2003), which told the story of French alpinist Jean-Christophe Lafaille's mission to climb Dhaulagiri, Nanga Parbat, and Broad Peak in a period of two months. He acts as a design consultant for manufacturers of outdoor equipment, and is a representative of his adopted  hometown's football team, the Seattle Seahawks. He is a member of the board of directors for Big City Mountaineers, an urban youth organization that offers wilderness experiences. Viesturs has also found a niche as a corporate motivational speaker.