Rescue efforts have been called off for two well-known Japanese climbers who fell from K2, the world's second-highest mountain in Pakistan, according to Japanese mountaineering equipment shop operator Ishii Sports.
Kazuya Hiraide, 45, from Nagano Prefecture, and Kenro Nakajima, 39, from Nara Prefecture, slid down from a height of some 7,000 meters while climbing an unused route along the western wall, said Ishii Sports, to which both climbers were affiliated.
The two were spotted from a helicopter, but it could not land to retrieve them due to the steep location and other logistical problems. With the consent of their families, the company decided to end the rescue operations, considering that the two had not made any move since their fall and that there was a risk of collapse.
Ishii Sports praised the two for their achievements and said it will continue to provide support as much as possible.
K2, which is 8,611 meters tall and second only to Mount Everest in height, is located in the Karakoram range of northern Pakistan.
Both Hiraide and Nakajima have received the prestigious Piolets d'Or award, given to outstanding climbers, multiple times. In recent years, the pair focused on conquering new routes and the walls of many mountains yet to be climbed.
Hiraide also received the Uemura Naomi Adventure Award, created as a tribute to legendary Japanese adventurer Naomi Uemura, while Nakajima had participated in a mountaineering project in a popular Japanese television show.
