Lukas Furtenbach and his team at the base camp at the foot of Mount Everest will soon be popping champagne corks. The four Britons Garth Miller, Alistair Carns, Anthony Stazicker and Kevin Godlington reached the highest point on earth at 8,849 meters today (with bottled oxygen and Sherpa support) – five days after setting off from London last Friday. Furtenbach Adventures announced this in its Instagram story.
The Brits arrived at Everest Base Camp (EBC) by helicopter on Saturday and left for high camp that evening with a strong Sherpa team. They are expected back at base camp today or tomorrow morning at the latest and will return home on Friday, Lukas writes to me from EBC. The goal: to be back in London within seven days.
Regardless of how you think about it, Furtenbach’s controversial experiment to radically shorten the time for an Everest expedition by using xenon for pre-acclimatization was a success. Provided, of course, that nothing happens to his clients on the descent.
More red blood cells in a short space of time
The four climbers, all former members of the British Army, had been preparing for their Everest expedition since the beginning of the year. They had each spent around 500 hours in hypoxia tents and trained with hypoxia masks. On 5 May, they also inhaled a xenon/oxygen mixture under medical supervision in a German hospital. For less than an hour, with a xenon content lower than usual for anesthesia, as Furtenbach’s medical advisor Dr. Michael Fries told the Washington Post.
The effect of the xenon exposure: the kidneys produce more EPO by leaps and bounds, resulting in significantly more red blood cells. A rapid acclimatization by inhalation, so to speak. “There is no health risk,” Lukas Furtenbach, who has tested the method on himself several times, told me in January.
According to Dr. Fries, a total of 15 people have so far been treated with the xenon/oxygen mixture. A higher haemoglobin level, i.e. more red blood cells, was found in all of them. They all felt fine afterwards and no one showed symptoms of high altitude sickness on the mountain, the doctor said.
No doping, says Furtenbach
Critics of the use of xenon had complained, among other things, that there were still no comprehensive studies on the effectiveness of the noble gas as part of acclimatization. The international alpinism association UIAA had warned against using xenon. “Inappropriate use can be dangerous,” said the UIAA statement. The world association also pointed out that xenon is on the list of banned substances published by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
Lukas Furtenbach had vehemently contradicted all of the UIAA’s points. The head of Furtenbach Adventures also did not want to be accused of supporting doping in the mountains. “It’s also about the intended use. Dexamethasone is also on the WADA banned list. Does that mean I can’t use it on an expedition if I develop cerebral edema? We use this xenon treatment to prevent high altitude sickness, high-altitude pulmonary edema and high-altitude cerebral edema. As an additional acclimatization. Not to improve performance,” said the Austrian. “In addition, we are not involved in competitive sport. So by definition, no doping.”
The xenon experiment polarized the mountaineering scene. Furtenbach even received death threats, in his own words. Unbelievable and inexcusable. You are allowed to disagree with the Austrian – but death threats? That’s not acceptable!
Update 4 pm: Elite Exped, the company of Nepalese mountaineering star Nirmal Purja, announced today that its client Andrew Ushakow from the USA reached the summit of Everest on Monday, just under four days – exactly three days, 23 hours and seven minutes – after setting off from New York. Without xenon, but with bottled oxygen from base camp and accompanied by five Nepalese mountaineers.
Update 22 May: Lukas Furtenbach has warned against blindly copying his concept. “Don’t try to repeat this fast ascent – without the expertise, medical infrastructure, acclimatization science and ethical responsibility we have taken on,” Lukas writes on Instagram. “Everest doesn’t forgive shortcuts. It punishes hubris. This mountain demands respect. The 7-Day Mission was a tribute to that respect — a controlled test, not a template to follow blindly.”
Update 23 May: The four Brits are back in London after their Everest trip. After six days and 13 hours. This is what Lukas Furtenbach announces. “Over and out,” writes the Austrian on Instagram. Goal achieved.
