First woman on Everest joins First Philippine Mt. Everest Expedition on Mt. Apo climb

The First Philippine Mt. Everest Expedition Team has just returned from a memorable climb to the peak of Mt. Apo, the country's highest mountain, with Junko Tabei, the first woman to ever reach the peak of Mt. Everest.

Tabei's visit was upon the invitation of the Pinoy expedition which has set its sights on Mt. Everest. "It's an honor for us to climb with Ms. Tabei because she is a respected mountaineer, having been the first woman to reach Mt. Everest's summit," said FPMEE leader Art Valdez during the press conference lunch held at National Sports Grill's new homecourt at Greenbelt 3.

Taking the classic Nepalese route (the same route used by Everest pioneers Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay), she climbed Mt. Everest in May 1975 and successfully reached its summit despite the mountain's harsh weather conditions and an avalanche which buried her team.

Tabei, now 66, has summitted more than 100 of the world's tallest mountains. In 1992, she was the first woman to complete the seven highest mountains in the world known as the Seven Summits. She has now added Mt. Apo on her list of conquests.

During the Mt. Apo expedition, the climbers were accommodated by the Local Government of Kidapawan as well as the Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC) which also invited the team to participate in their Mt. Apo reforestation project. So aside from the climb itself, the FPMEE and Tabei also planted trees around the mountain.

The climb was also an opportunity for Tabei to get to know the members of the Pinoy expedition. The team bonded with the world-renowned climber who shared tips and lessons on surviving and conquering the Himalayan giant. She praised the Philippine expedition for their hard work and training in order to meet their objective: that proud moment when they finally plant the Philippine flag atop Mt. Everest.

"The climb has been a delightful experience for me, because I was able to experience the Filipino expedition's strong sense of camaraderie and teamwork--both are important values of mountaineering which will help them succeed on Mt. Everest," Tabei said in her native Japanese.

The First Philippine Mt Everest Expedition is supported by Globe International Services, Philippine Airlines, ABS-CBN, Stratworks, The North Face, MedCentral, Coleman, Fitness First, PowerUp, the Rudy Project, FedEx, Kodak, the Philippine Accident Manager's Insurance and the National Sports Grill.