David Goettler and Kilian Jornet abandon Everest bid

David Goettler and Kilian Jornet have abandoned their ‘No o2’ climb on Everest through poor health.

“No, no we didn’t climb Everest,” revealed Goettler via his Social Media channels.

“Finally, after a lot of waiting for tropical cyclones to pass and snow to settle, we began an attempt, but on reaching the South Col we both decided to stop.

“Kilian Jornet left from BC and I left from C2. We both climbed through the night and met at South Col and we both experienced the same sensation of not feeling well or strong. It was a bizarre moment when we regrouped at South Col and told each other we were not ok, both of us having had exactly the same experience and feeling equally not right.

“So actually, it was easy to know we should stop. It would have been foolish to continue to climb higher in that state. You can’t climb Everest in our style if you don’t feel 100%, and luckily both of us know very well how we should feel at those altitudes.

“So, we stopped our climb and descended. Even though we could blame the wind for having prevented us from going on (it was pretty windy at S Col), it wasn’t the wind or bad weather or bad conditions on the mountain. It was our bodies and how we felt, and it’s equally important to listen to your body and respect it. It’s just one more piece of this difficult puzzle. When the margins of safety are this slim, if one piece doesn’t fit you don’t get to finish the puzzle.

“Disappointed, of course. Regretful. Not a bit.”