Josef Rakoncaj
Josef "Rak" Rakoncaj (born 6 April 1951) is a Czech mountaineer, mountaineering coach, author of books on mountaineering and also an entrepreneur in the field of special clothing and equipment for trekking and mountaineering expeditions.
 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Main discipline | Alpine climbing |
| Born | 6 April 1951 Dvůr Králové nad Labem, Czechoslovakia |
| Nationality | Czech |
| Career | |
| Notable ascents | First in the world to climb K2 twice |
| Family | |
| Children | Son Lukáš, daughter Lucie |
He was born in Dvůr Králové nad Labem. He started with climbing on the local sandstone in Bohemian Paradise, where he has registered 54 First ascents.[1][2][3] Internationally he is known for being the first person in the world to climb the summit of K2 (the second highest mountain in the world) twice – in 1983 and 1986.[2][4] For the first of these two successful ascents, Rakoncaj was a member of the 1983 Italian expedition led by Francesco Santon, which made the second successful ascent of the North Ridge (31 July 1983). Three years later, on 5 July 1986, he reached the summit via the Abruzzi Spur (double with Broad Peak West Face solo) as a member of Agostino da Polenza's international expedition.[4]
Together with Radek Jaroš he is one of the most successful Czech climbers based on the number of successful ascents of eight-thousanders. He has never used supplemental bottled oxygen, as he considers that unsportsmanlike.[3] He has written several books about his climbing career.[5]
He is married, has son Lukáš and daughter Lucie.[2] His interests include piloting ultralight aircraft.[2]
Notable early successful ascents below 8000 m
- 1972 – Matterhorn – north face
- 1975 – Koshtan-Tau traverse (5145m) – Dykh-Tau (5198m), (Caucasus)
- 1976 – Trollryggen north face of the Trolls – 1st winter ascent via Rimon route – Norway
- 1976 – Shkara (Caucasus), first ascent of the south face
- 1977 – Kalanka – 6931 m – Garhwal Himalayas – first ascent of the north face
- 1978 – Peak Oshanina 6320 m – Pamir – first ascent of the NE face in alpine style, 53 rope lengths, 6 days, with Slavo Drlik
- 1980 – Monte Agnèr – S wall, Dolomites – 1st winter ascent by Messner route
- 1980 – Yerupaja – 6630 m – Peru – west face
- 1981 – Nanda Devi – 7816 m – Garhwal Himal – first ascent by north pillar
- 1982 – Aiguille du Plan, 1st winter ascent of Gabarrou and Petit Dru, North Face, Grand Couloir, 1st winter ascent
Ascents of the eight-thousanders
- 1983 K2, 8611 m – north pillar (bivouac 50 m below the summit)
- 1984 Lhotse Shar, 8383 m – first ascent of the south face[6]
- 1985 Dhaulagiri, 8167 m – SW pillar by alpine style, unsuccessful, reached 6800 m
- 1986 K2, 8611 m – Abruzzi ridge alpine style
- 1986 Broad Peak, 8047 m – solo ascent of the west face alpine style
- 1987 Mount Everest, 8850 m, on the SW face, unsuccessful, reached 8300 m
- 1987 Mount Everest, 8850 m, on the S face, unsuccessful, reached 8650 m
- 1988 Annapurna, 8091 m – south face – British 1970 route
- 1989 Manaslu, 8163 m – south face
- 1990 Cho Oyu, 8201 m – west face alpine style
- 1990 Shishapangma, 8046 m – north face, alpine style
- 1992 Nanga Parbat, 8125 m – west (Diamir) face, Kinshofer route
- 1993 Makalu, 8463 m, Kukuczka route, unsuccessful, reached 8100 m
- 1994 Mount Everest, 8850 m, on the north face, unsuccessful, reached 7500 m
- 1995 Kangchenjunga, 8586 m, southwest face route, unsuccessful, reached 8000 m
References
- "Josef 'Rak' Rakoncaj". www.skalnioblasti.cz. Archived from the original on 15 November 2021. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
- "Neuvěřitelný bivak na vrcholu K2 i obdivované prvovýstupy. Rakoncajovi je 70 | Aktuálně.cz". Aktuálně.cz (in Czech). 6 April 2021. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
- "Josef Rakoncaj – Dvakrát na K2 a zásadně bez kyslíku". ČT24 (in Czech). Archived from the original on 29 September 2020. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
- "AAC Publications - Asia, Pakistan, Broad Peak and K2". publications.americanalpineclub.org. Archived from the original on 6 May 2019. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
- "Měl jsem kliku. Josef Rakoncaj a Miloň Jasanský". National Geographic Česko (in Czech). Archived from the original on 16 April 2021. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
- "The HJ/41/5 CZECHOSLOVAK EXPEDITION TO LHOTSE SHAR, 1984". The HJ/41/5 CZECHOSLOVAK EXPEDITION TO LHOTSE SHAR, 1984. Archived from the original on 15 June 2022. Retrieved 3 July 2022.