Kenton Cool

He has completed over 45 notable expeditions in the Greater Ranges and, in 2013, became the first person to climb Nuptse, Everest and Lhotse in a single push without returning to base camp.

In 1996, he suffered a fall from a rock face near Llanberis Pass in north Wales with calcaneal fractures of both heel bones; he was told by a specialist that "the chances are you will walk with a stick for the rest of your life.

"[7] A year of surgery and therapy saw him determined to regain his climbing form, and he joined the British Association of Mountain Guides scheme.

[13] A leading Alpine climber, he operates in the Alps and Greater Ranges of the Himalayas as a fully qualified IFMGA (UIAGM) Guide and Expedition Leader.

[17] Cool is considered one of the UK's top mountain and ski expedition leaders, having made several ascents of hard routes with clients, including the first British guided ascent of the north face of the Eiger in 2007 with polar explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes, then in his sixties, who was initially afraid of heights.

[9][21] This was a feat many thought to be impossible, due to the amount of time spent at high altitude and the effect this has on the human body.

[20][23] In October 2006 he was the first British person to complete a ski descent of an 8,000-metre peak, on Cho Oyu in Nepal, the 6th highest mountain in the world.

The Britons were also the first foreign climbers to reach the 8,850 metre (29,035 ft) peak in two years, after a group of Sherpa guides fixing ropes got to the top on Wednesday 11 May.

[25] Cool was wearing a hand painted protective lid by British contemporary artist Teddy McDonald.

[30] In March 2007, Cool was part of a three-man team (with Sir Ranulph Fiennes and Ian Parnell) to raise funds for the Marie Curie Eiger Challenge Appeal.

A successful ascent of the north face of the Eiger raised £1.8 million for the Marie Curie Cancer Care charity.

[31] Annually, Cool provides a series of speaking events for the Royal Geographical Society and various outdoor clothing manufacturers and retailers, as well as giving keynote speeches at corporate conferences.