In the fifties, the route to Everest was closed by Chinese-controlled Tibet. Nepal allowed one expedition per year. Hillary had been part of a British reconnaissance expedition to the mountain two years earlier in 1951. The 1953 Everest expedition consisted of a huge team of over 400 people, including 362 porters, 20 Sherpa guides and almost 5,000 kilograms of baggage. Expedition leader Hunt named two British mountaineers: Tom Bourdillon and Charles Evans as the first assault team. Hillary and Norgay were the second assault team. Bourdillon and Evans attempted the climb, but due to a failing oxygen system only reached the South Col, about 100 meters below the summit. Then Hillary and Norgay got their chance. A crucial last part of climbing Mount Everest is a 12-meter rock face, which Hillary managed to climb. Today it is known as the Hillary Step. They reached the 8,848-meter high summit, the highest point on Earth, at 11:30 a.m. on May 29, 1953.
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