Members of expedition:
1. Vadim Sviridenko, head of expedition
2. Vladimir Alperin
3. Alexander Vlasenko
4. Vladislav Terzyul

Alexander Vlasenko, Master of Sport, MD, city of Odessa:

Taking the final, most difficult steps, I was hardly able to breathe. I sat down on the rocky summit of Broad Peak. Slava Terzyul, who had been there for close to five minutes already, gave me some words of encouragement while documenting the scene with a video camera. Behind us was the long and arduous ascent to the top. Our success was preceded by acclimatization climbs and the setting up of auxiliary camps. Vladimir Alperin was on the saddle between the summit peaks at 7800m. To avoid getting altitude sickness, he had decided to go back to the assault camp. The weather was unstable. The foreign climbing groups also on the route had decided against the summit bid that day.


Terzyul on Broad Peak, K2 is visible in the distance.

This is an 8000m peak!’ I thought. I was filled with joy and gratitude to God and the mountain for the ascent. Vladislav called to Base Camp and we heard words of congratulation from expedition leader Vadim Sviridenko. After taking photographs as memories of the mountain, the descent began. It was 5 p.m. We downclimbed toward the saddle’s safety. The sun, which was already getting very low, finally slipped below the horizon. Twilight came on quickly. Descent through the deep snow was difficult, especially for myself, and Vladislav was constantly asking me to move quickly. But for me that was already impossible due to my severe fatigue.

The longest part of the descent occured in darkness with wind that had intensified in force. It blew off my warm mitten; my hand was freezing. Finally we reached the place where there should be ropes to aid us on the steepest part of the route. We searched for a long time in the darkness, but could not find the ropes because of the dim light our flashlights were giving - the batteries were depleted. Suddenly we heard the voice of Vladimir Alperin: “Come here, I am waiting for you”. He had come out to meet us with a flashlight and thermos filled with hot tea. With his help we quickly reached the tent. Comforted there, we grabbed a snack and drank tea for a long time. It was midnight when we arrived.

It was hard to wake up in the morning, but Vladislav forced us to wake up and have breakfast. We got ready and began to descend. With every hundred meters down, we felt stronger, and at twilight we reached Base Camp. There Vadim took us in his bear-like embrace, and climbers from Poland, Canada, and other countries congratulated us. Broad Peak in the sunlight was forceful and beautiful. Thank you for allowing us to reach to the summit. Thank you friends and especially Vladislav Terzyul for this ascent.