On June 30 at 23:30, Antonina Samoilova stood atop Nanga Parbat. An altitude of 8,125 meters is not just a statistic; it is one of the most dangerous points on the planet, which climbers call the «killer mountain». But for this Ukrainian woman, the ascent became something greater than a sporting achievement. It was an act of remembrance and a symbol of spiritual strength.
«The Killer Mountain» and the Cost of Mistakes
Nanga Parbat does not forgive mistakes. The statistics here are harsh: on average, the mountain claims the lives of one in five climbers. Before the first successful ascent in 1953, 31 people had already died here. Even now, the risk remains critical. The route passes through steep vertical terrain where the slope reaches 80 degrees. The most difficult section for Samoilova was the Kinshofer Wall — a nearly 200-meter rock and ice wall at an altitude between 5,800 and 6,600 meters.
The danger begins even before setting out on the route. The mountain is located in one of the most dangerous areas of Pakistan. In 2013, militants shot 11 people in the base camp, including three Ukrainians. «You arrive there and immediately feel unsafe. And when the ascent begins, rockfalls, avalanches, and ice collapses are added. There is simply no right to make mistakes here,» admits the mountaineer.
The Assault After Poisoning and Without a Safety Rope
This assault was a true test of endurance for Antonina. Right before the decisive night, she suffered severe food poisoning. Severe dehydration lasted almost a day, but she made the decision to go on. «Severe dehydration lasted almost a day. I took medication to at least stop the symptoms. But I decided to go,» she recalls.
The most terrifying moment came at the end of the ascent. After nine hours of night climbing, the safety ropes ran out. This happened just before the most dangerous sections. They had to be overcome without a safety rope and without the ability to anchor. «I looked down and realized: one wrong move — and I would fall hundreds of meters. The ropes simply weren't enough. And then I stopped thinking about the summit and started thinking about how we would get down from there,» Samoilova said.
«Wings of Memory» at an Altitude of 8,125 Meters
Upon reaching the summit, Antonina did not celebrate her victory alone. She performed a memorial performance in honor of Ukrainian mountaineers who, after the start of the full-scale war, became soldiers, paramedics, scouts, drone pilots, and died defending Ukraine.
For this, she changed into a three-meter memorial cloak called «Wings of Memory». It features more than 60 names and portraits of those who could have continued to conquer the world's peaks but chose the front instead. All this time, she remained without oxygen, as the tank was attached to the backpack. The design was created by Ukrainian designer Fedor Vozianov, founder of the Vozianov brand.
Among those whose names appeared on the cloak are mountaineer and scout Yevhen Aleshchenko, military surgeon Myroslav Debenko, mountain tourist and medic-shooter Roman Zhuk, and dozens of other Ukrainians. Antonina Samoilova dedicated this ascent to the entire Ukrainian mountaineering community that stood up to defend the country, including participants of the Climb Army initiative.
The First Ukrainian Woman to Conquer the «Five Summit of the World»
This victory made Antonina Samoilova the first Ukrainian woman to conquer the «Five Summit of the World». Every assault for her is an opportunity to show the world the strength of the Ukrainian spirit. Fellow mountaineers who tried to conquer this peak but were forced to interrupt their expedition due to rockfalls supported Samoilova's idea, calling it an important message.
