CELEBRATING THE 70TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST STEPS ON EVEREST’S PEAK
Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary made history with their daring climb to the summit of Everest, also known as Chomolungma to Sherpas and Tibetans. Today, Rolex is supporting their legacies in the Himalaya through its Perpetual Planet Initiative. The Himalayan Trust and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa Foundation, now run by the climbers’ children, are protecting the region’s environment and empowering its local communities.
On 29 May 2023, the families of Norgay and Hillary will gather once again near the foot of Everest to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the two men’s momentous achievement. To commemorate the event, both family foundations, with support from the Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative, have refurbished two cultural centres in the Everest region. These centres celebrate the history, traditions, culture, and accomplishments of the local communities.
The centres are dedicated to the history and identity of the Sherpa people, and will act as a platform to raise awareness of environmental issues in the area and celebrate the valuable contribution of the Sherpa community to mountaineering, just as the two legendary mountaineers did throughout their lives.
AN EXPLORATION OF LIMITS
On 29 May 1953, two men made history. Mount Everest had always captivated the imaginations of explorers and mountaineers, but no one had successfully reached the top. Not until Nepali-Indian Norgay and New Zealand’s Hillary, members of an incredible expedition team led by Sir John Hunt, became the first people in recorded history to successfully step onto the world’s highest peak.
With this one triumphant climb, the duo demonstrated to the world that summiting Mount Everest was possible.
“THEIR SUCCESS SHOWED THAT YES, IT CAN BE DONE, AND HILLARY AND TENZING BECAME LIKE ROCK STARS OF THE TIME.”
Peter Hillary, The Himalayan Trust
Since the 1930s, Rolex had been equipping explorers with its watches to test the reliability of the timepieces in harsh conditions across the planet. In 1953, Rolex equipped the historic Everest expedition, which established a series of camps at increasing elevations before an attempt on the summit. Only two of the climbers, Hillary and Norgay, made it all the way.
A NEW BEGINNING
Since the 1953 climb, the ties between Norgay, Hillary, and Rolex have remained strong. The successful ascent was the beginning of a new journey for the two mountaineers, who strived relentlessly to give back to the region that had changed their lives. Rolex and its Perpetual Planet Initiative support their mission today by working closely with their families’ foundations.
“MY FATHER FIRST MET MR WILSDORF, FOUNDER OF ROLEX, IN 1953, AFTER HE CLIMBED EVEREST, AND EVER SINCE OUR FAMILY HAS HAD A VERY STRONG RELATIONSHIP WITH THE COMPANY.”
Norbu Tenzing, Tenzing Norgay Sherpa Foundation
Norgay spent much of his life trying to empower his own Sherpa community. He was deeply troubled by the loss that families suffered because of frequent injury and deaths of Sherpa mountaineers. He trained young Sherpas to become safer climbers and instilled a sense of adventure and exploration for thousands of students at the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute in Darjeeling, India, which he helped establish in 1954. It became an important part of his life to help widows become financially independent and improve the community’s access to healthcare and employment, but most of all to improve education in the region. He hoped that this would open up opportunities for future generations to pursue their desired professions. Today, with support from Rolex, Norgay’s work continues through the Tenzing Norgay Sherpa Foundation.
“BECAUSE OF HIS ACHIEVEMENT, HE WAS ABLE TO PUT THE NAME SHERPA IN THE DICTIONARY. HE REALLY PAVED THE WAY FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS.”
Norbu Tenzing, Tenzing Norgay Sherpa Foundation
Hillary, too, devoted much of his life to the welfare of the Everest region and its people. Through The Himalayan Trust Hillary and his family built hospitals, schools, bridges and the Tenzing-Hillary airport in Lukla. He was also passionate about the region’s environment, so his foundation helped establish the Sagarmatha National Park, and took up reforestation of areas around the foothills of Mount Everest.
“MY FATHER FELT HIS GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT WAS THE PARTNERSHIP WITH LOCAL PEOPLE UP THERE IN THE HIMALAYA. THAT COLLABORATION, AND SENSE OF TRUST AND CONNECTION, IS SOMETHING THAT CAME FROM VERY DEEP INSIDE HIS HEART.”
Peter Hillary, The Himalayan Trust
ABOUT THE PERPETUAL PLANET INITIATIVE
For nearly a century, Rolex has supported pioneering explorers pushing back the boundaries of human endeavour. The company has moved from championing exploration for the sake of discovery to protecting the planet, committing for the long term to support individuals and organizations using science to understand and devise solutions to today’s environmental challenges.
This engagement was reinforced with the launch of the Perpetual Planet Initiative in 2019, which initially focused on individuals who contribute to a better world through the Rolex Awards for Enterprise, on safeguarding the oceans as part of an established association with Mission Blue and on understanding climate change via its long-standing partnership with the National Geographic Society.
The initiative’s portfolio continues to expand with more than 20 partners including: Cristina Mittermeier and Paul Nicklen in their work as conservation photographers; Rewilding Argentina and Rewilding Chile, offspring organizations of Tompkins Conservation, which are protecting landscapes in South America; Coral Gardeners, transplanting resilient corals to reefs; the Under The Pole expeditions, pushing the boundaries of underwater exploration; and Steve Boyes and the Great Spine of Africa series of expeditions, exploring the continent’s major river basins.
Rolex also supports organizations and initiatives fostering the next generations of explorers, scientists and conservationists through scholarships and grants, such as Our World-Underwater Scholarship Society and The Rolex Explorers Club Grants.