Who was the young mountaineer whose foot was found on Mount Everest?

In May 1999, 75 years after George Mallory and Andrew “Sandy” Irvine vanished during their attempt to be the first climbers to summit Mount Everest, an American team led by climber Conrad Anker made a remarkable discovery. At an altitude of around 26,700 feet, they came across a preserved, partially clothed, mummified body — that of George Mallory, confirmed by the name tag sewn into his clothing.

Mallory, a seasoned 37-year-old climber, had embarked on this third Everest attempt in 1924 with 22-year-old Andrew Irvine, a passionate Oxford scholar with a knack for managing the expedition’s oxygen equipment. On June 6, the pair began their final ascent and were last seen on June 8, only 1,000 feet from Everest’s summit. After this sighting, clouds obscured their climb, and they disappeared without leaving any conclusive proof of their success.

A key piece of evidence that could have verified their summit attempt — Mallory’s camera — was never found, and thus, it remains uncertain whether they reached the top. One possible hint that they may have been descending is the presence of Mallory’s goggles in his pocket, suggesting he might have taken them off as dusk fell on the way down. Irvine’s remains, however, remained elusive until 2024, when a documentary crew led by Jimmy Chin found a worn leather boot with a red label marked “A.C. IRVINE.”

While no definitive proof exists to confirm their summit, expedition geologist Noel Odell, who had the last sighting of the two, believed they might have reached the top despite the difficult conditions and Irvine’s attempts to repair their malfunctioning oxygen equipment. Their shared ambition and Mallory’s legendary response to why he wished to climb Everest — “Because it’s there” — has cemented their place in mountaineering history as pioneers who pursued their dreams against all odds.