Theo Fritsche

Every year, over a thousand climbers try to reach the summit of Mount Everest, with the annual record for successful attempts currently standing at 633. But of that number, nearly half were Sherpas - the mountain's unsung heroes. Yet the Sherpa community has remained secretive about their nation, culture and experiences living in the shadow of the world's highest mountain. Now, for the first time, they open the door into their world. Adapted version for the BBC of the original Austrian documentary 'Die Suche der Sherpas'.

Sherpas are the real heroes of high altitude mountaineering. To the early explorers of the Himalayan region they were immeasurably valuable. Without their skills as guides, their hardiness and endurance as porters even the most modern mountain expeditions would not have been possible. But to this day the achievements of the Sherpas have not found their way into the alpine history books. The blue-chip documentary 'The Sherpas' Quest' shows where these people come from and reveals the real importance of the Sherpas for the international climbing and mountaineering community.

History books tells us that in 1953, Hillary and Tensing were the firsts to conquer Mount Everest. However the German researcher Jochen Hemmleb is now casting doubt on this belief as just below the summit of Mount Everest he and his team discovered the well-preserved body of George Mallory, who in 1924 had made an assault on the peak with his climbing partner Andrew Irvine. Did Mallory stand on the summit 30 years before Hillary? To find an answer to this question, we follow Jochen Hemmleb on a further risky search expedition on the roof of the world. Using criminological methods Hemmleb and his team also hope also to find the body of Mallory’s partner, Andrew Irvine. In 1924 Irvine had a small camera with him, whose contents may provide proof as to who was actually the first person to reach Everest’s summit.

Short version of the documentary 'Erster auf dem Everest': History books tells us that in 1953, Hillary and Tensing were the firsts to conquer Mount Everest. However the German researcher Jochen Hemmleb is now casting doubt on this belief. Did Mallory stand on the summit 30 years before Hillary? To find an answer to this question, we follow Jochen Hemmleb on a risky search expedition on the roof of the world. Using criminological methods Hemmleb and his team hope also to find the body of Mallory’s partner, Andrew Irvine. In 1924 Irvine had a small camera with him, whose contents may provide proof as to who was actually the first person to reach Everest’s summit.