Zdenek Hruby climbed some of the world’s highest peaks but also inspired a generation of climbers with his commitment to exploration, ethics, and camaraderie.
Hruby’s career was marked by committed ascents, selfless acts, and the relentless pursuit of unclimbed routes, culminating in a tragic fall on Gasherbrum I in 2013. August 8 marks the 12th anniversary of his passing. Tomorrow, August 9, would have been his 69th birthday.
Zdenek Hruby on the summit of Nanga Parbat. Photo: Lideahory.cz
Background
Born in 1956 in the former Czechoslovakia, Hruby was an engineer and economist by training. He studied cybernetics at the Czech Technical University in Prague and then economics in Germany and England. He had a successful career in government as a senior manager in economics and finance. Later, he worked as a teacher at the Faculty of Social Sciences at Charles University in Prague.
A father of two, Hruby balanced his professional and academic life with his passion for mountains, particularly the highest peaks of the Himalaya and Karakoram.
On the left, a young Zdenek Hruby. Photo: Goat.cz
8,000’ers
Hruby’s mountaineering career lasted two decades. Between 1994 and 2012, he climbed eight of the world’s 14×8,000’ers: Cho Oyu (1994), Gasherbrum I and II (1997), Lhotse (1999), Shisha Pangma (2004), Broad Peak (2007), Dhaulagiri I (2008), and Nanga Parbat (2012). In 2002, he led the first successful Czech expedition to Kangchenjunga.
His approach emphasized alpine-style ascents: light, self-sufficient climbs without supplemental oxygen or extensive support.
Shisha Pangma, 2004. From left to right: Radek Jaros, Martin Minarik, Zdenek Hruby, and Petr Masek. Photo: Goat.cz
His 2004 alpine-style ascent of Shisha Pangma with Radek Jaros, Martin Minarik, and Petr Masek took place via the challenging MacIntyre route. The team earned the Czech Mountaineering Association’s Ascent of the Year award.
In 2006, Hruby was a member of a Czech party that summited 4,892m Mount Vinson in Antarctica. The Czech Mountaineering Association also recognized this expedition as one of their Ascents of the Year.
In the spring of 2008, during a successful Dhaulagiri I expedition, Hruby and Radek Jaros rescued three climbers, earning them the Czech Club Fair Play Prize and a diploma from the European Fair Play Movement.
Antarctica in 2006. From left to right: Rudolf Svaricek, Laďa Nosek, Pavol Barabas, and Zdenek Hruby. Photo: Goat.cz
In 2009, Hruby partnered with Marek Holecek to attempt the unclimbed Southwest Face of Gasherbrum I. At 7,500m, just 500m from the summit, Hruby suffered a ruptured gastric ulcer, forcing a dramatic descent. Holecek stayed with Hruby and guided him to safety.
Nanga Parbat
In 2011, Hruby and Holecek targeted the feared Rupal Face of Nanga Parbat via a new route. Hruby was forced to abandon the climb midway with a hand injury, and Holecek turned back in deteriorating weather. One year later, they returned to Nanga Parbat and summited by the Kinshofer route in alpine style, overcoming harsh conditions. The Czech Mountaineering Association awarded the climb an honorable mention, recognizing the duo’s perseverance and skill.
Number 1 marks the new route on Talung climbed by Zdenek Hruby and Marek Holecek in 2013. Photo: Billy Roos
Talung
In the spring of 2013, Hruby and Holecek made the first ascent of the northwest wall of 7,349m Talung in Nepal’s Kanchenjunga region. The route gained about 1,900 vertical meters, with 2,500m of climbing (WI6 M6+). The two men descended via the route of the 1964 first ascent, reaching base camp on May 20.
“Nobody could have foreseen that Talung would be our last summit together,” Marek Holecek wrote in his report for the American Alpine Journal. “Fate had been so generous to us, and then it took back what was given with no mercy. The first is so easy to accept automatically, but the second is very hard to cope with, and the memories leave deep scars that will never heal.”
Marek Holecek, left, and Zdenek Hruby. Photo: Lideahory.cz
Death on Gasherbrum I
In 2013, as part of their Never Stop Exploring expedition series, Hruby and Holecek planned three ambitious climbs: two in the Himalaya and one in Antarctica. Their primary goal was to complete the first ascent of the Southwest Face of Gasherbrum I, a route they had attempted in 2009.
On August 8, a day before Hruby’s 57th birthday, Hruby and Holecek were descending Gasherbrum I after an unsuccessful summit bid. During the descent, Hruby made a technical error, using the wrong carabiner while abseiling, and fell roughly 1,000m down the Southwest Face. The fall was fatal, and his body could not be recovered by helicopter.
Zdenek Hruby on the summit of Broad Peak. Photo: Zdenek Hruby
The climbing community mourned Hruby’s death. The Alpine Club of Pakistan, the Czech Mountaineering Federation, and the UIAA put out statements. A memorial was established at the Hruba Skala climber’s cemetery in the Czech Republic.
In 2017, Marek Holecek completed the Southwest Face of Gasherbrum I with Zdenek Hak, naming the route “Satisfaction” in Hruby’s memory. This ascent, completed on Holecek’s fifth attempt, was awarded the 2018 Piolet d’Or.
An influential man
Hruby’s influence extended beyond his climbs. Elected president of the Czech Mountaineering Federation in 2009 and re-elected in 2012, he also served on the executive committee of one of the Czech Republic’s largest sports organizations. His leadership helped promote mountaineering in the Czech Republic, fostering a culture of adventure and ethical climbing.
Hruby also served as the Czech Republic’s Deputy Minister of Finance.
Zdenek Hruby. Photo: Wspinanie.pl
