Snow Leopard award
Encyclopedia
The Snow Leopard award was a Soviet mountaineering
Mountaineering
Mountaineering or mountain climbing is the sport, hobby or profession of hiking, skiing, and climbing mountains. While mountaineering began as attempts to reach the highest point of unclimbed mountains it has branched into specialisations that address different aspects of the mountain and consists...

 award, given to very experienced climbers. It is still recognised in the Commonwealth of Independent States
Commonwealth of Independent States
The Commonwealth of Independent States is a regional organization whose participating countries are former Soviet Republics, formed during the breakup of the Soviet Union....

. To receive this award, a climber must summit all 5 peaks of 7000m and above located in the former Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

.

In 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....

's 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...

 there are 3 Snow Leopard peaks, Ismail Samani Peak
Ismail Samani Peak
Ismoil Somoni Peak is the highest mountain in Tajikistan and in the former Soviet Union, named after Ismoil Somoni, the ancestor of the Samanid dynasty.When the existence of a peak in the Soviet Pamir Mountains higher than Lenin Peak was first established in 1928, the mountain...

 (formerly Communism Peak) 7,495 m (24,590 ft), Peak Korzhenevskaya
Peak Korzhenevskaya
Peak Korzhenevskaya is the third highest peak in the Pamir Mountains of Tajikistan. It is one of the five "Snow Leopard Peaks" in the territory of theformer Soviet Union. It is named after Evgenia Korzhenevskaya, the wife of Russiangeographer Nikolai L...

 7,105 m (23,310 ft), and Ibn Sina Peak (formerly Lenin Peak
Lenin Peak
Lenin Peak , rises to in Gorno-Badakhshan on the border of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, and is the second-highest point of both countries. It is considered one of the easiest 7,000 m peaks in the world to climb and it has by far the most ascents of any 7,000 m or higher peak on earth, with every...

) 7,134 m (23,406 ft) on the Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...

-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....

 border. In the Tian Shan
Tian Shan
The Tian Shan , also spelled Tien Shan, is a large mountain system located in Central Asia. The highest peak in the Tian Shan is Victory Peak , ....

 there are 2 Snow Leopard peaks, Jengish Chokusu (formerly Peak Pobeda
Peak Pobeda
Jengish Chokusu is the highest mountain in the Tian Shan mountain system at . It lies on the Kyrgyzstan-China border, in the Kakshaal Too, the highest part of the Tien Shan, southeast of lake Issyk Kul.- Names :...

) 7,439 metres (24,406 ft) in Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...

 (divided by the border with China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

), and Khan Tengri
Khan Tengri
Khan Tengri is a mountain of the Tian Shan mountain range. It is located on the China—Kyrgyzstan—Kazakhstan border, east of lake Issyk Kul. Its geologic elevation is , but its glacial cap rises to...

 7,010 m (22,998 ft) on the Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...

-Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...

 border.

Khan Tengri's geologic elevation is 6,995 m (about 22,950 ft.) but its glacial cap rises to 7,010 m. For this reason, it is considered a 7000m peak.

In order of difficulty, Peak Pobeda
Peak Pobeda
Jengish Chokusu is the highest mountain in the Tian Shan mountain system at . It lies on the Kyrgyzstan-China border, in the Kakshaal Too, the highest part of the Tien Shan, southeast of lake Issyk Kul.- Names :...

 is by far the most difficult and dangerous, followed by Khan Tengri, Ismail Samani Peak, Peak Korzhenevskaya, and Lenin (Ibn Sina) Peak.

There are 567 climbers, including 29 women, have got this award since 1981 till 2010, see the list http://www.russianclimb.com/snowleopard/table.htm.

Records

  • Boris Korshunov (Russia
    Russia
    Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

    , Moscow
    Moscow
    Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...

    ) - 9 times Snow Leopard (1981 - 2010).
  • Boris Korshunov (Russia
    Russia
    Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

    , Moscow
    Moscow
    Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...

    ) - last Award at the age of 69
  • Denis Urubko
    Denis Urubko
    Denis Urubko is a mountaineer from Kazakhstan with Russian descent. In 2009, he became the 15th person to climb the 14 eight-thousanders....

     (Kazakhstan
    Kazakhstan
    Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...

    , Almaty
    Almaty
    Almaty , also known by its former names Verny and Alma-Ata , is the former capital of Kazakhstan and the nation's largest city, with a population of 1,348,500...

    ) - all 5 ascents in 42 days of one year (summer 1999).
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK