Brigitte Muir

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Brigitte Muir
Personal information
Birth nameBrigitte Leonce Suzanne Koch
Born (1958-09-08) 8 September 1958 (age 66)
Ougrée, Seraing, Belgium
Career
Notable ascents Mount Everest (1997)
Seven Summits (1997)
Shivling (1986)
Family
Spouse Eric Renz. Former husband Jon Muir

Brigitte Leonce Suzanne Muir OAM (born 8 September 1958) [1] is a Belgian-born Australian mountain climber. Her climbing career spanned over thirty years. [2]

Contents

Early life and education

Muir was born Brigitte Koch in Ougrée, Belgium.

Climbing career

In 1986, she made, with husband at the time Jon Muir and friend Graeme Hill, the first ascent of the South West Pillar of Shivling in Northern India. [3]

In 1997, she became the first Australian woman to summit Mount Everest [3] [4] [5] and the first Australian, male or female, to climb the Seven Summits (the highest summit on each of the continents). [6]

In 1998, Penguin (Viking) published her autobiography, The Wind in My Hair.

In 2008, SBS broadcast The Eighth Summit, a documentary directed and produced by wife and husband team Anne and Wayne Tindall, and based on Brigitte’s life. [7]

After her career in mountaineering and adventure, Brigitte became a film maker [8] and an inspirational speaker. [9] She now leads community building treks in her beloved village of Lura in Eastern Nepal, where she started a women’s literacy and empowerment program. [10] [11] [12]

Awards and citations

Bibliography

References

  1. Lily Portugaels. "La Liégeoise qui a conquis l'Everest". lalibre.be.
  2. "EverestHistory.com: Brigitte Muir". Archived from the original on 14 September 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  3. 1 2 Will Steffen (2010). Himalayan Dreaming: Australian Mountaineering in the Great Ranges of Asia, 1922-1990. ANU E Press. pp. 562–. ISBN   978-1-921666-16-2.
  4. "At last our Brigitte is on top of the world". The Age, STEPHEN CAUCHI, 27/05/1997 via the SMH News Store
  5. "theage.com.au - The Age".
  6. "Civics | Brigitte Muir". Archived from the original on 1 November 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  7. "Conquering Everest". The Age.
  8. "Brigitte Muir takes us 'behind the smile'". abc.net.au.
  9. "Brigitte Muir OAM - The first Australian woman to climb Mt Everest and the first Australian to climb the Seven Summits - Saxton Speakers Bureau". Saxton Speakers Bureau.
  10. "Alan Attwood, Anita Sethi and Brigitte Muir". Australian Broadcasting Corporation .
  11. "I was there. Making it to the top of Everest". The Age.
  12. "Business Beyond the Earthquake Trek". hdfa.org. Archived from the original on 31 August 2015.
  13. "AG Society Spirit of Adventure Awards". Australian Geographic.
  14. "It's an Honour - Honours - Search Australian Honours".
  15. "It's an Honour - Honours - Search Australian Honours".
  16. "Brigitte Muir OAM". State Government of Victoria. Retrieved 8 March 2025.

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