The Undefeated Ali Sadpara – Pakistan’s national hero and iconic climber

‘A man can be destroyed but not defeated’. Out of 7.8 billion people on this planet, very few people would be able to live up to this saying of Ernest Hemingway.

Pakistan’s national hero and iconic mountaineer Ali Sadpara is certainly one of them. Mountains were Ali’s passion and lifelong love. He was a tough guy who had all that it takes to be a great mountaineer.

“I would find my way in my adventure no matter what happens, even I will make my home with snow if I am ever trapped in snowy mountains but will never surrender my passion,” Sadpara said in an interview.

Hailing from a village in Skardu, named Sadpara, which was home to many porters who helped summit seekers from worldwide with their backbreaking loads on the gateway of K2, Ali Sadpara used to deliver supplies to Pakistan army posts leading to Siachen in the mid-1990s. After doing this job on the highest battleground between Pakistan and India, Sadpara had no fear in mind about the tough task of mountaineering.

He straddled life and death as he continued the daring climbing missions. This courage and unmatched passion won him the title of the only mountaineer from Pakistan to have climbed eight of the fourteen 8,000 meter peaks.

Sadpara was not just a climber. He was also a family man through and through. He would do anything for his family to earn bread and butter for them. He worked odd jobs in Karachi and in the mines of Balochistan due to financial constraints but used to tell his family: “I don’t want to work, it’s climbing that I want to do.”

Ali Sadpara knew that he belonged up in the snowy peaks. “The mountains called me,” he said, and readily answered the call.

In 2004, he started working as a porter as part of an expedition to K2 and there was no looking back since then. The passionate Sadpara went on to climb all major peaks of Pakistan including K2, Nanga Parbat, Gasherbrum, and Sputnik peak. Sadpara limited resources but his courage and resilience helped him achieve big dreams, and he came out stronger after every expedition.

Ali Sadpara made Pakistan incredibly proud in 2016 when he made a world record with the first winter summit of Nanga Parbat in 2016 along with Spain’s climber Alex Txikon and Italy’s Simone Moro.

Sadpara dreamed of putting the flag of Pakistan, which he loved dearly, on the country’s highest peak K2 in winters. But this daring mission that came, which came after 10 Nepali climbers made the first winter ascent of K2, proved fatal for Sadpara and the team.

The three climbers, Pakistan’s Ali Sadpara Iceland’s John Snorri and JP Mohr Prieto from Chile, who were attempting to K2 summit in winter, lost their contact with the base camp on February 5. The news of Pakistan’s legendary climber missing in the K2 brought the whole country to a standstill as people prayed and prayed for the safe return for more than a week. The unprecedented search and rescue mission continued despite harsh and chilly weather but there was no clue.

Miracles do happen but it seemed like Ali Sadpara had this time gone to the mountains forever. He belonged to mountains and ultimately mountains embraced him in their arms. Mountains wanted him to live with them forever. How could Ali Sadpara deny the calling of his beloved mountains? He too embraced them. He will always shine high with mountains.

The tragic news broke on February 17, 2021, when the three missing climbers, including our national hero Ali Sadpara, were officially declared dead on the world’s second-highest peak in Pakistan.

Sajid Ali Sadpara, the son of legend Ali Sadpara, confirming the death of the mountaineers and declaring the end of the rescue mission said that he would “fulfill his father’s dream and mission to climb.” Sajid who had last seen Sadpara at K2’s dangerous ‘bottleneck’ before returning due to equipment failure, believes that the trio must have met an accident on the way back after the K2 summit as he saw them go beyond 8,300m. But sadly, there is no way to prove it.

Pakistan’s hero climber may not have lived a long life but he will live in our hearts forever. He not only climbed towering mountains but also conquered millions of hearts around the world.

Rest in peace the proud son of Pakistan.