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Junko Tabei

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Junko Tabei
Junko Tabei in 1985 at Communism Peak
Born(1939-09-22)22 September 1939
Miharu, Fukushima, Japan
Died20 October 2016 (aged 77)
Kawagoe, Saitama, Japan
NationalityJapanese
OccupationMountaineer
Known forFirst woman to summit Mount Everest; first woman to ascend the Seven Summits

Junko Tabei (田部井 淳子, Tabei Junko, 22 September 1939 – 20 October 2016)[1] was a Japanese mountaineer. She was the first woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest, and the first woman to ascend all Seven Summits by climbing the highest peak on every continent.[2][3][4]

Early life

Tabei was born in Miharu, Fukushima, the fifth daughter in a family of seven children.[5][6] She was considered a frail, weak child, but nevertheless she began mountain climbing at the age of 10, going on a class climbing trip to Mount Nasu.[5][7] Although she was interested in doing more climbing, her family didn't have enough money for such an expensive hobby, and Tabei made only a few climbs during her high school years.[6]

Adult life

From 1-no-woman-had-scaled-mt-everest-yet/|title=It’s 1975. No woman had scaled Mt Everest yet... | Condé Nast Traveller India|website=Condé Nast Traveller India|language=en-US|access-date=2016-10-23}}</ref> In early May the group were camping at 6,300 meters when an avalanche struck their camp. The women and their guides were buried under the snow. Tabei lost consciousness for approximately six minutes until her sherpa guide dug her out. Twelve days after the avalanche, on 16 May 1975, Tabei became the first woman to reach the summit of Everest.[8][3]

As a result of her achievement, Tabei was showered with attention: she received messages from the King of Nepal and the Japanese government, a television miniseries was made about the expedition and she toured Japan making personal appearances. However, Tabei was uncomfortable with this level of fame.[6]

Later activities

In the 1990–91 season, Tabei reached the summit of Mount Vinson, Antarctica's highest mountain.[9] On June 28, 1992, she summited Puncak Jaya and became the first woman to complete the Seven Summits.[2][4]

In addition to her climbing, Tabei worked on ecological concerns; in 2000, she completed postgraduate studies at Kyushu University focusing on the environmental degradation of Everest caused by the waste left behind by climbing groups.[5] Tabei was also the director of the Himalayan Adventure Trust of Japan, an organization working at a global level to preserve mountain environments.[3] One of the trust's projects was to build an incinerator to burn climbers' rubbish. She also led and participated in "clean-up" climbs in Japan and the Himalayas.[6] BUTTTHOLLLLLEEEEEItalic text

Personal life

Tabei was married to Masanobu Tabei, a climber she met while climbing in Japan in 1965. The couple had two children: a daughter, Noriko, and a son, Shinya.[6]

Tabei was diagnosed with cancer in 2012, however she continued with many of her mountaineering activities. She died in a hospital in Kawagoe on 20 October 2016.[7]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Official website- profile". Retrieved 22 September 2010.
  2. ^ a b Robert Horn (29 April 1996). "No Mountain Too High For Her : Junko Tabei defied Japanese views of women to become an expert climber". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on December 13, 2013. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help) Retrieved 29 December 2015
  3. ^ a b c Otake, Tomoko, "Junko Tabei : The first woman atop the world", Japan Times, 27 May 2012, p. 7
  4. ^ a b The American Alpine Journal. Vol. Volume 67 of American Alpine Club Annual Resources Series. The Mountaineers Books. 1997. p. 125. ISBN 0930410556. {{cite book}}: |volume= has extra text (help)
  5. ^ a b c "Junko Tabei, first woman to conquer Everest, complete 'Seven Summits,' dies at 77". The Japan Times Online. 2016-10-22. ISSN 0447-5763. Retrieved 2016-10-23.
  6. ^ a b c d e "Junko Tabei defied Japanese views of women to become an – 04.29.96 – SI Vault". 2013-10-07. Retrieved 2016-10-23.
  7. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Kurtenbach, Elaine (31 March 1991). "Japanese Woman Scales Mountains While Ignoring Society's Stereotypes". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
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