Tenzing Norgay (left) and Sir Edmund Hillary taking a break on the icy slopes leading to Mt Everest. They made history for their ascent to the world's highest peak on May 29, 1953. Photo: Royal Geographical Society
In 1997, I had the privilege of chaperoning the late Sir Edmund Hillary during his visit to support our Malaysia Everest 1997 Project. At the time, I was editing a newspaper that was a major supporter of the initiative. On May 23 that year, M. Magendran and N. Mohanadas proudly planted the Jalur Gemilang atop the world’s highest peak.
N. Mohanadas (holding the camera) and M. Magendran created history when they set foot on the summit of Mt Everest in 1997.
Hillary was invited by the Sports Ministry, then led by Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin. His schedule was packed, but on a few occasions, I managed to accompany him, thanks to the Ministry’s support. I had done my homework, reading extensively about him, his climbing partner Tenzing Norgay, and their historic ascent of Mount Everest on May 29, 1953, at 11:30 am.
Soft-spoken and careful with his words, especially knowing I was a journalist Hillary was affable and humble. I was mindful not to ask questions that had been asked of him hundreds of times before by others.So much had already been written about their extraordinary achievement. It became clear that he preferred discussing his humanitarian work in Nepal, which followed his successful climb.
I had always been curious about who actually reached the summit first. Both Hillary and Tenzing were steadfast in saying they reached the top “together”. This was significant, given the anti-colonial sentiments prevalent at the time, particularly in countries under the British Empire. National consciousness was rising across colonised lands, with India having gained independence in 1947.
There was a desire to celebrate Tenzing as the first to reach the summit. After all, he was the one featured in the only photo taken at the top of Everest. The reason? Tenzing didn’t know how to operate the camera to take Hillary’s picture. However, they both stood by their account.
It was only in 1961, in his memoir Tiger Of The Snows, that Tenzing admitted, “If it is a discredit to me that I was a step behind Hillary, then I must live with that discredit.”
When I asked Hillary if Tenzing’s account was accurate, he smiled and said, “You will have to ask him.” Unfortunately, Tenzing had passed away in 1986.
Sir Edmund Hillary (left) and Tenzing Norgay were long held to be the first people to summit Mount Everest.
There was, however, one topic Hillary seemed reluctant to discuss – the long-standing mystery that some consider the greatest in mountaineering history: Did two members of the 1924 British expedition reach the summit 29 years before Hillary and Tenzing?
This year marks the 100th anniversary of that historic and controversial third British expedition to Everest.
Hillary appeared slightly uncomfortable when I brought it up. It was a 73-year-old mystery at the time, one that had followed him everywhere. He was asked about it at gatherings, in private, and in books and documentaries. He confided that he had no answer.
In previous interviews, he had famously said, “I don’t know whether Mallory or Irvine reached the summit... What I do know is that Tenzing Norgay and I were the first to get to the top and back down to the bottom again.”
Hillary passed away in 2008 at the age of 88, perhaps with some sadness that many doubted he and Tenzing were the first to reach the summit.
Did George Leigh Mallory (38) and Andrew “Sandy” Irvine (22) reach the peak on June 8, 1924? That morning, both had made their summit bid. One of the expedition members, Noel Odell, claimed to have seen them “going strong for the top” at 12:50pm. Odell reported seeing “a black spot” followed by another, before clouds enveloped them. They never returned to the advanced camp. Odell’s account of the exact location where he saw them changed over time, further deepening the mystery.
Hillary was not around when an expedition financed by National Geographic set out in 1999 to find the bodies of Mallory and Irvine. They did find Mallory. Two pieces of evidence supported those who believed Mallory and Irvine had succeeded. Mallory’s family insisted he carried a picture of his wife Ruth in his pocket to leave on the summit, but the picture was missing. Additionally, his snow goggles were found in his pocket, suggesting he died at night after a successful climb.
To solve the mystery, Irvine’s body must be found. He was carrying a Vest Pocket Kodak camera, and Kodak claimed they could still develop the film, even if it’s 100 years old.
In 1997, Hillary told me, “You see, Johan, I am not worried about the history of Everest being rewritten, if at all it is true they summited first.” I understood his frustration. It wasn’t about discrediting him or Tenzing; it was about the lies, conjectures, and spins clouding the narrative.
Fast-forward to today. With the advent of the Internet, blogs and podcasts on the matter are proliferating, and so too is the debate on various social media platforms. Conspiracy theories abound, with some even suggesting that Irvine’s body was secretly removed from the mountain and buried elsewhere to hide the evidence.
If Hillary were still alive, this would undoubtedly be painful for him.
But the truth must prevail. The most intriguing mystery of the enigmatic Mount Everest must be solved once and for all, at least for the sake of one of the greatest mountaineers who ever lived.
The writer is a trekker and mountain climber. He celebrated his 70th birthday last November on the summit of Mount Batur in Bali.
Everest expedition members Dawa Sherpa, Peter Hillary and Brent Bishop upon reaching the summit on May 16, 2002. In a phone call to his father Sir Edmund Hillary, Peter became emotional, realising the great task they had accomplished. Photo: National Geographic Society
