Balyberdin climber biography

He was the first of the domestic athletes to rise to the highest peak of the planet, also conquered several more inaccessible peaks. Thirty years ago, in July, at the intersection of Sofia Street and Glory Avenue, a car accident occurred - a heavy truck, a trailer from Finland, collided with the Volga, literally crushed it. The driver of the passenger car died. Although there were documents under him, due to the negligence of the police officers, he was corrected into the morgue as an unidentified and almost buried as an unknown.

So the life of one of the most famous climbers of the Soviet Union, the first of our athletes ascended to Everest, Vladimir Balyberdin, broke off. An expedition of the USSR national team to the highest peak in the world has not been one of the main sporting events of the year in no way. She aroused interest to the whole country, almost overshadowing the performance of the national football team at the World Cup in Spain.

For the first time, domestic climbers stormed the “third pole of the planet”, besides, they chose the most difficult, previously not passed route, dared to conquer Everest along the southwestern wall. Not a single team managed to go along this path to the end to our athletes. Among them, Leningraders are Vladimir Balyberdin and Vladimir Shopin. They already had extensive experience of climbing to the tops of the Pamir.

So, Balyberdin in the year won the championship of the country, held at the peak of communism. The snow leopard Vladimir Balyberdin was born in the Altai Territory, for a long time his birth was considered on July 2, later it was established that the future conqueror of Everest was born in the year. He studied in Leningrad, where he became interested in mountaineering. Starting from the year, he participated in mountain expeditions.

Having graduated from LETI, the Leningrad Electrotechnical Institute, he worked in his specialty for several years, he completely focused on sports since the year, becoming an instructor in mountaineering in the Spartak sports society. Alpinism, as the submissors of the peaks themselves are convinced, are not quite a sport, or even not a sport, but a lifestyle.

This is a special character of a person, a special type of thinking. For people like Vladimir Vysotsky sang, "only mountains that have not yet been to the mountains can be better." His comrades recalled about Vladimir Balyberdin as a laconic, closed, severe man. Everyone noted his excellent physical training, and during the expedition to the Himalayas to climb the highest peak of the world of Leningrad, sorry for the involuntary pun, went to the peak of forms.

The leadership of the national team determined Vladimir along with the Moscow athlete Eduard Moslovsky in a couple, which was the first to reach a record height of meters. Moslovsky was older and more experienced, but during the ascent as a leader in their duet, Balyberdin became. Incredible efforts, Soviet climbers, despite the thorough training, prolonged fees, still did not have experience at altitudes of more than meters.

They collided on Everest with difficult conditions - an ice wind, a lack of oxygen, fatigue accumulated very quickly. The base camp was deployed at the mark of meters. On the eve of the expedition received adverse weather forecasts, its deterioration could disrupt all plans. It was necessary to hurry. The higher the climbers rose, the more difficult it became. Moslovsky was injured, lost a backpack with a load of ropes, hooks and carbines, and most importantly, he damaged an oxygen mask.

Balyberdin gave his partner an oxygen apparatus and, taking into account his condition, carried all the goods on himself, including a movie camera that he shot for history. In the diary, which Vladimir was led in hot pursuit, he admitted that the complexity of the route was underestimated. The last site was given with incredible efforts. On the morning of May 4, Balyberdin realized that he had achieved the desired goal.

He got in touch on the walkie -talkie and said the phrase in history: "All the ways in all directions from here lead only down." Because I went in, because the first. There was also pride in the success of the expedition, for the glorious Leningrad mountaineering, to the offensive small in the Himalayas. I am glad that he did without oxygen and still in good health and on his feet, ”wrote Vladimir Balyberdin in his diary.

Before a sharp deterioration in the weather, nine Soviet athletes managed to rise to Everest. Vladimir Balyberdin was awarded the title “Honored Master of Sports”, at the end of the year he was included in the ten best athletes of the USSR. In the future, he once again ascended Everest, also conquered the tops of the K-2 Chogori and Kanchenjang.