Quick Facts
Biography
Park Young-seok (Korean: 박영석; Hanja: 朴英碩: November 2, 1963 – October 2011 on Annapurna) was a South Korean mountaineer.
In May 2005, he became the first person in the world to complete a Explorers Grand Slam. He climbed the world's 14 Eight-thousanders, the Seven Summits, and trekked to both poles. He holds the world's third fastest time (behind Kim Chang-ho of South Korea and Jerzy Kukuczka of Poland) for ascending the 14 Eight-thousanders, the Guinness World Record for climbing six of the 8,000-meter Himalayan peaks within one year, and another record for reaching the South Pole on foot in 44 days, self-sufficient and without any food re-supplies.world.
Achievements
| Name of Peak | Elevation (m) | Date of summit | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Everest | 8,848 | 1993-05-16 |
| 2. | K2 | 8,611 | 2001-07-22 |
| 3. | Kangchenjunga | 8,586 | 1999-05-12 |
| 4. | Lhotse | 8,516 | 2001-04-29 |
| 5. | Makalu | 8,463 | 2000-05-15 |
| 6. | Cho Oyu | 8,201 | 1997-09-27 |
| 7. | Dhaulagiri | 8,167 | 1997-04-27 |
| 8. | Manaslu | 8,163 | 1998-12-06 |
| 9. | Nanga Parbat | 8,125 | 1998-07-21 |
| 10. | Annapurna | 8,091 | 1996-05-04 |
| 11. | Gasherbrum I | 8,068 | 1997-07-09 |
| 12. | Broad Peak | 8,047 | 2000-07-30 |
| 13. | Gasherbrum II | 8,035 | 1997-07-19 |
| 14. | Shishapangma | 8,027 | 2000-10-02 |
| 15. | Aconcagua | 6,959 | 2002-01-11 |
| 16. | Denali | 6,195 | 1994-06-02 |
| 17. | Kilimanjaro | 5,895 | 1997-02-17 |
| 18. | Elbrus | 5,642 | 2002-07-07 |
| 19. | Vinson Massif | 4,897 | 2002-11-25 |
| 20. | Carstensz Pyramid | 4,884 | 2002-05-11 |
| 21. | Kosciusko | 2,280 | 2001-09-21 |
| 22. | South Pole | 2,835 | 2004 |
| 23. | North Pole | Sea level | 2005-04-30 |
| 24. | Everest North-South Traverse | 8,848 | 2006-05-11 |
Disappearance
Park and his other team members went missing after their last communications on October 18, 2011 while attempting a new route on Annapurna. Park Young-Seok, Shin Dong-Min and Gang Gi-Seok decided to abort the climb at around 6400 meters due to heavy rock fall and went missing during the descent. Despite a dangerous and daring rescue operation to find the missing climbers, no signs of Park, Shin or Gang were found. The Korean Alpine Federation called off the rescue operation for Park and his team at 12:00 on October 28, 2011.