Erik Weihenmayer
Encyclopedia
Erik Weihenmayer is the first blind
person to reach the summit of Mount Everest
, on May 25, 2001. He also completed the Seven Summits
in September 2002. His story was covered in a Time
article in June 2001 titled Blind to Failure. He is the author of Touch the Top of the World: A Blind Man's Journey to Climb Farther Than the Eye can See, his autobiography
.
After he became blind, at first, Weihenmayer did not want to use a cane or learn Braille. He wanted to prove that he could continue living as he had. He tried to play ball, but once he understood that he was incapable of doing so, he learned to wrestle. In high school he went all the way to the National Junior Freestyle Wrestling Championship in Iowa. At that time he started using a guide dog. Then he went to Boston College and graduated as an English major. He became a middle-school teacher and wrestling coach. In 1997, he married Ellie Reeve The wedding took place at Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. They have a daughter, Emma.
Erik is an acrobatic skydiver
, long distance biker, marathon
runner, skier, mountaineer, ice climber, and rock climber. He is a friend of Sabriye Tenberken
, whom he visited in Tibet
to climb with teenagers from the school for the blind. A documentary film
based on the project, Blindsight
, was released in 2006. Another documentary, Fellowship of the Andes
, was produced by Dutch filmmaker Bernd Out
. The film shows how Erik inspires a team of blind and visually impaired students on their mountain trek across the Andes in June 2006. In addition, Erik is an active speaker on the lecture circuit. He is represented by Leading Authorities speakers bureau.
In 2011, he competed on ABC's Expedition Impossible
.
and became totally blind by the age of 13.
In 1987, he graduated from Weston High School
in Connecticut
. As the school’s wrestling
captain, he represented the state in National Freestyle Wrestling Championships.
In 1991, he graduated from Boston College
. In the same year, he trekked in the Pamir Mountains
of Tajikistan
.
In 1993, he received a master’s degree in Middle School Education from Lesley College. In the same year, he crossed the Batura Glacier
in the Karakoram
Mountains of Northern Pakistan
. The same year he joined the staff at Phoenix Country Day School as an instructor.
In 1995, Erik reached the 20,320’ summit of Mt. McKinley, North America’s highest peak, sponsored by the American Foundation for the Blind
. His triumph was featured on Today with Katie Couric
and the NBC
Nightly News with Tom Brokaw
.
In 1996, he carried the Olympic Torch through Phoenix
and was selected for the first annual Distinguished Arizona
n Award by the Governors Council. He was also inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, and received its first Medal of Courage
.
In 1997, he climbed his second continental summit, Kilimanjaro. He married at the height of 13,000’. Erik and his wife Ellen live outside of Denver, Colorado
, United States
.
In 1998, he rode a tandem bike from Hanoi
to Ho Chi Minh City
with his father, a Vietnam
veteran.
In 1999, he attempted Argentina's
Mount Aconcagua
. Poor weather conditions forced his team to turn around just short of the summit. A subsequent attempt on a separate trip was successful.
In 2001, he climbed and summited Mt. Everest.
In 2004, he led an expedition in Tibet
called Climbing Blind project, including blind teens from the Braille Without Borders
school for blind at Lhasa
, Tibet
.
In 2006, helped to lead Global Explorers sponsored expedition, Leading the Way
, to Peru. The expedition film, Fellowship of the Andes
, premiered in New York City 28th Oct 2006.
In 2007, was the speaker at Lehigh University
's spring commencement ceremony on May 21.
In 2009, he was a speaker at the Presidential Youth Inaugural Conference on January 19.
In 2009, he was a speaker at the Babson College
spring commencement ceremony on May 16 where he was also awarded a PhD in Humane Letters.
In 2011, he competed on the ABC
reality show Expedition Impossible
on the team No Limits with teammates Jeff Evans and Aaron "Ike" Isaacson. They finished 2nd overall.
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
person to reach the summit of Mount Everest
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at above sea level. It is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. The international boundary runs across the precise summit point...
, on May 25, 2001. He also completed the Seven Summits
Seven Summits
The Seven Summits are the highest mountains of each of the seven continents. Summiting all of them is regarded as a mountaineering challenge, first postulated as such and achieved on April 30, 1985 by Richard Bass .-Definition:...
in September 2002. His story was covered in a Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
article in June 2001 titled Blind to Failure. He is the author of Touch the Top of the World: A Blind Man's Journey to Climb Farther Than the Eye can See, his autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
.
After he became blind, at first, Weihenmayer did not want to use a cane or learn Braille. He wanted to prove that he could continue living as he had. He tried to play ball, but once he understood that he was incapable of doing so, he learned to wrestle. In high school he went all the way to the National Junior Freestyle Wrestling Championship in Iowa. At that time he started using a guide dog. Then he went to Boston College and graduated as an English major. He became a middle-school teacher and wrestling coach. In 1997, he married Ellie Reeve The wedding took place at Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. They have a daughter, Emma.
Erik is an acrobatic skydiver
Skydiver
A skydiver is a person who engages in the sport of parachuting. It may also refer to:* SkyDiver a futuristic submarine featured in the TV series UFO* "Skydiver" a carnival ride produced by Chance Morgan...
, long distance biker, marathon
Marathon
The marathon is a long-distance running event with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres , that is usually run as a road race...
runner, skier, mountaineer, ice climber, and rock climber. He is a friend of Sabriye Tenberken
Sabriye Tenberken
Sabriye Tenberken is a German socialworker and co-founder of the organisation Braille Without Borders.- Biography :Sabriye was born near Bonn, Germany, and she became gradually visually impaired and completely blind by the age of thirteen due to retinal disease. She studied Central Asian Studies...
, whom he visited in Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
to climb with teenagers from the school for the blind. A documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
based on the project, Blindsight
Blindsight (2006 film)
Blindsight is a 2006 documentary film directed by Lucy Walker and produced by Sybil Robson Orr for Robson Entertainment. It premiered at 2006 Toronto International Film Festival in the category Real to Reel....
, was released in 2006. Another documentary, Fellowship of the Andes
Fellowship of the Andes
Fellowship of the Andes is a documentary film starring blind climber Erik Weihenmayer.In 2001, climber Erik Weihenmayer was the first blind man to summit Mount Everest. In June 2006 he guided a team of blind and visually impaired students across the Andes...
, was produced by Dutch filmmaker Bernd Out
Bernd Out
-References:...
. The film shows how Erik inspires a team of blind and visually impaired students on their mountain trek across the Andes in June 2006. In addition, Erik is an active speaker on the lecture circuit. He is represented by Leading Authorities speakers bureau.
In 2011, he competed on ABC's Expedition Impossible
Expedition Impossible (TV series)
Expedition Impossible is a 2011 American reality television series. The series follows thirteen teams of three competitors as they "solve problems while racing across deserts, over mountains and through rivers" across the nation of Morocco. The first team to cross the finish line after completing...
.
Biography and list of achievements
On September 23, 1968, Erik was born with a disease called retinoschisisRetinoschisis
Retinoschisis is an eye disease characterized by the abnormal splitting of the retina's neurosensory layers, usually in the outer plexiform layer, resulting in a loss of vision in the corresponding visual field in some rarer forms...
and became totally blind by the age of 13.
In 1987, he graduated from Weston High School
Weston High School, Connecticut
Weston High School is a public high school in Weston, Connecticut, serving about 800 students in grades 9–12.Weston High School seniors in the class of 2006 had the highest average SAT scores in the state, and many WHS students go on to attend selective colleges and universities. The Class of 2008...
in Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. As the school’s wrestling
Wrestling
Wrestling is a form of grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position...
captain, he represented the state in National Freestyle Wrestling Championships.
In 1991, he graduated from Boston College
Boston College
Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...
. In the same year, he trekked in the Pamir Mountains
Pamir Mountains
The Pamir Mountains are a mountain range in Central Asia formed by the junction or knot of the Himalayas, Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, and Hindu Kush ranges. They are among the world’s highest mountains and since Victorian times they have been known as the "Roof of the World" a probable...
of Tajikistan
Tajikistan
Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....
.
In 1993, he received a master’s degree in Middle School Education from Lesley College. In the same year, he crossed the Batura Glacier
Batura Glacier
Batura Glacier is one of the largest and longest glaciers outside the polar regions. It lies in the Gojal region of the Northern Areas of Pakistan, just north of Batura and Passu massifs. It flows west to east...
in the Karakoram
Karakoram
The Karakoram, or Karakorum , is a large mountain range spanning the borders between Pakistan, India and China, located in the regions of Gilgit-Baltistan , Ladakh , and Xinjiang region,...
Mountains of Northern Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. The same year he joined the staff at Phoenix Country Day School as an instructor.
In 1995, Erik reached the 20,320’ summit of Mt. McKinley, North America’s highest peak, sponsored by the American Foundation for the Blind
American Foundation for the Blind
The American Foundation for the Blind is an American non-profit organization that expands possibilities for people with vision loss. AFB's priorities include broadening access to technology; elevating the quality of information and tools for the professionals who serve people with vision loss; and...
. His triumph was featured on Today with Katie Couric
Katie Couric
Katherine Anne "Katie" Couric is an American journalist and author. She serves as Special Correspondent for ABC News, contributing to ABC World News, Nightline, 20/20, Good Morning America, This Week and primetime news specials...
and the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
Nightly News with Tom Brokaw
Tom Brokaw
Thomas John "Tom" Brokaw is an American television journalist and author best known as the anchor and managing editor of NBC Nightly News from 1982 to 2004. He is the author of The Greatest Generation and other books and the recipient of numerous awards and honors...
.
In 1996, he carried the Olympic Torch through Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
and was selected for the first annual Distinguished Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
n Award by the Governors Council. He was also inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, and received its first Medal of Courage
Medal of Courage
The Medal of Courage is an Israeli military decoration. The medal is awarded for carrying out acts of gallantry at the risk of life, during combat duty. The medal was established in 1970 by act of law in the Knesset....
.
In 1997, he climbed his second continental summit, Kilimanjaro. He married at the height of 13,000’. Erik and his wife Ellen live outside of Denver, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
In 1998, he rode a tandem bike from Hanoi
Hanoi
Hanoi , is the capital of Vietnam and the country's second largest city. Its population in 2009 was estimated at 2.6 million for urban districts, 6.5 million for the metropolitan jurisdiction. From 1010 until 1802, it was the most important political centre of Vietnam...
to Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City , formerly named Saigon is the largest city in Vietnam...
with his father, a Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
veteran.
In 1999, he attempted Argentina's
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
Mount Aconcagua
Aconcagua
Aconcagua is the highest mountain in the Americas at . It is located in the Andes mountain range, in the Argentine province of Mendoza and it lies west by north of its capital, the city of Mendoza. The summit is also located about 5 kilometres from San Juan Province and 15 kilometres from the...
. Poor weather conditions forced his team to turn around just short of the summit. A subsequent attempt on a separate trip was successful.
In 2001, he climbed and summited Mt. Everest.
In 2004, he led an expedition in Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
called Climbing Blind project, including blind teens from the Braille Without Borders
Braille Without Borders
Braille Without Borders is an international organisation for the blind in developing countries. It was founded in Lhasa, Tibet by Sabriye Tenberken and Paul Kronenberg in 1998.- Overview :...
school for blind at Lhasa
Lhasa
Lhasa is the administrative capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China and the second most populous city on the Tibetan Plateau, after Xining. At an altitude of , Lhasa is one of the highest cities in the world...
, Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
.
In 2006, helped to lead Global Explorers sponsored expedition, Leading the Way
Leading the Way
This article refers to the ministry, for other uses, see Leading the Way Leading the Way is the international Christian media ministry of Dr. Michael Youssef...
, to Peru. The expedition film, Fellowship of the Andes
Fellowship of the Andes
Fellowship of the Andes is a documentary film starring blind climber Erik Weihenmayer.In 2001, climber Erik Weihenmayer was the first blind man to summit Mount Everest. In June 2006 he guided a team of blind and visually impaired students across the Andes...
, premiered in New York City 28th Oct 2006.
In 2007, was the speaker at Lehigh University
Lehigh University
Lehigh University is a private, co-educational university located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the United States. It was established in 1865 by Asa Packer as a four-year technical school, but has grown to include studies in a wide variety of disciplines...
's spring commencement ceremony on May 21.
In 2009, he was a speaker at the Presidential Youth Inaugural Conference on January 19.
In 2009, he was a speaker at the Babson College
Babson College
Babson College is a private business school located in Wellesley, Massachusetts near Boston.- History :Babson College was founded by Roger Babson on September 3, 1919, as the Babson Institute. It was renamed "Babson College" in 1969...
spring commencement ceremony on May 16 where he was also awarded a PhD in Humane Letters.
In 2011, he competed on the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
reality show Expedition Impossible
Expedition Impossible (TV series)
Expedition Impossible is a 2011 American reality television series. The series follows thirteen teams of three competitors as they "solve problems while racing across deserts, over mountains and through rivers" across the nation of Morocco. The first team to cross the finish line after completing...
on the team No Limits with teammates Jeff Evans and Aaron "Ike" Isaacson. They finished 2nd overall.
External links
- Erik's Official Website
- "Fellowship of the Andes" Official Filmsite
- ClimbingBlind.org
- The Blind Sight homepage.
- "Weihenmayer Reaches the Top" (article from The Braille Monitor)
- Erik's statistics and climbing biography on 7ummits.com
- 2001 NFB/Allegra Everest Expedition Official Website
- Flickr Photo Pool of Images from 2001 NFB/Allegra Everest Expedition