Paul Niel

Last updated
Paul Niel
Paul Niel headshot.png
Paul Niel at Mount Everest, 2013
Born
NationalityAustrian
Alma mater University of Vienna
Occupation(s)Investor, adventurer, explorer, public speaker
Years active2002–present
Website www.paulniel.com

Paul Niel is an Austrian adventurer, explorer, and public speaker. He has organized and participated in more than 15 expeditions across all continents.

Contents

In 2013, Niel summitted Mount Everest and Lhotse, the world's 4th highest peak, within 24 hours. He also completed the seven summits project, the highest mountain on every continent. [1]

Early life and education

Niel graduated in statistics from the University of Vienna. In 2002, Niel moved to London and started working at JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs. In 2013, he founded Lhotse Consult, a boutique investment consultancy focusing on technology and alternative investments.

Niel was selected for the Graduate Studies Program at Singularity University in 2014, where he co-founded Peared, an augmented reality project. [2] He received the Austrian Foerderpreis by the Austrian Statistical Society in 2002. [3]

Exploration

Seven Summits

Between 2005 and 2012, Niel climbed Kilimanjaro (Africa), Elbrus (Europe), Carstensz Pyramid (Oceania), Aconcagua (South America) and Mount Vinson (Antarctica). [1]

In 2013, Niel successfully reached the summit of both Mount Everest (8850m) and Lhotse (8510m) the world's highest and fourth highest mountain within 24 hours. [1] The same year he also summited Denali in North America and completed the Seven Summits Project, to ascend the highest peak on every continent. [4]

Eastern Tibet

In 2015 Niel co-led an international expedition which successfully claimed the first ascent of Dechok Phodrang, a 5632m high peak in the Gangga Massif in Eastern Tibet. [5] He co-produced Tibetan Dreams, [6] a documentary highlighting the climb, which has been selected for screening that Mountainfilm Fest Graz 2016, Kathmandu International Film Festival and three other film festival. [7] [8]

Education Explorers

In 2015, Niel initiated the charity project Education Explorers which addressed the problem of girl access to schooling in India and was undertaken together with Indian charity Educate Girls. [9] Niel and a group of fellow explorers from Hong Kong and Chile traversed India in a Motor Rickshaw and raised more than HKD 500,000 in funds. [9] [10] The documentary, produced by Niel together with Tom Boarder, received the Award of Excellence by the Hollywood Independent International Documentary Festival in 2018. [11]

Round the Island Expedition

In 2017, Niel together with his wife successfully completed the first coasteering expedition around Hong Kong Island. The project raised awareness for plastic pollution and the couple mapped 163 trash pollution spots along Hong Kong Islands coast. In addition water samples taken along the expedition were analysed by The Open University of Hong Kong. [12]

The couple released the documentary The Loop, featuring the adventure and the issue of coastal pollution. [13] It was screened at Mountainfilm Graz in November 2019. [14]

Chapman Andrews Centennial Expedition

Niel was a member of the 2018 Chapman Andrews Centennial Expedition to search for fossils in the Gobi desert using latest drone and imaging technology. [15] The expedition has been awarded the 2019 Citation of Merit award by The Explorers Club.

Project Avenger

In November 2021 Niel led an international team of experts to successfully identify and uncover a US Navy TBF Avenger airplane that crash-landed during Operation Gratitude on 16 January 1945. The expedition combined elements of community archeology together with LIDAR and 3D scanning technology. [16] [17] [18]

Miscellaneous

Niel currently serves as the Head of Expeditions for the Explorers Club Hong Kong Chapter. [19] He has traveled to 97 countries and has organized more than 15 expeditions. He also participated in the Clipper Round the World Ocean Race 2013-14 for Team Switzerland.[ citation needed ]

In 2019, Paul Niel and his wife Esther set two new Guinness World Records for visiting the most UNESCO world heritage sites in 12 and in 24 hours. [20]

In 2021, Niel hiked with his wife and 6-year-old daughter Zaya to Everest Base Camp. She became the youngest girl ever to do so. [21]

Speaking

Niel is a frequent speaker on motivational and technology topics [22] and worked with the Royal Geographic Society and Asia Society. [23] He has spoken at conferences and corporate events in Europe and Asia. [24] [25] He has also spoken at two TEDx events and frequently contributes to the Royal Geographic Society School Outreach Program. [26]

Niel is also a contributor to the South China Morning Post, Action Asia Magazine and other publications. [27] [28] [29]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Everest</span> Earths highest mountain

Mount Everest is Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point. Its elevation of 8,848.86 m was most recently established in 2020 by the Chinese and Nepali authorities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lhotse</span> Eight-thousander and 4th-highest mountain on Earth, located in Nepal and China

Lhotse is the fourth highest mountain in the world at 8,516 metres (27,940 ft), after Mount Everest, K2, and Kangchenjunga. The main summit is on the border between Tibet Autonomous Region of China and the Khumbu region of Nepal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eight-thousander</span> Mountain peaks of over 8,000 m

The eight-thousanders are the 14 mountains recognised by the International Mountaineering and Climbing Federation (UIAA) as being more than 8,000 metres (26,247 ft) in height above sea level, and sufficiently independent of neighbouring peaks. There is no precise definition of the criteria used to assess independence, and, since 2012, the UIAA has been involved in a process to consider whether the list should be expanded to 20 mountains. All eight-thousanders are located in the Himalayan and Karakoram mountain ranges in Asia, and their summits are in the death zone.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kangshung Face</span> Eastern-facing side of Mount Everest

The Kangshung Face or East Face is the eastern-facing side of Mount Everest, one of the Tibetan sides of the mountain. It is 3,350 metres (11,000 ft) from its base on the Kangshung Glacier to the summit. It is a broad face, topped on the right by the upper Northeast Ridge, and on the left by the Southeast Ridge and the South Col. Most of the upper part of the face is composed of hanging glaciers, while the lower part consists of steep rock buttresses with couloirs between them. The steep southern third of the Kangshung Face also comprises the Northeastern Face of Lhotse; this section may be considered a separate face altogether following the division of the South "Neverest" Buttress up to the South Col. It is considered a dangerous route of ascent, compared to the standard North Col and South Col routes, and it is the most remote face of the mountain, with a longer approach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of Mount Everest expeditions</span>

Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at 8,849 metres (29,031.7 ft) above sea level. It is situated in the Himalayan range of Solukhumbu district, Nepal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2006 Philippine Mount Everest expedition</span>

The 2006 Philippine Mount Everest expedition is a Filipino mountaineering expedition that made a successful attempt to reach the summit of Mount Everest via the traditional southeast ridge route in May 2006 during the spring climbing season in the Himalayas. It was the first national expedition organized by the Philippines to reach the summit of world's highest mountain.

Adrian Hayes is a British record-breaking polar explorer and adventurer, best known for reaching the three extreme points of the Earth—the Three Poles Challenge—which involved walking all the way to the North Pole, South Pole and summiting Mount Everest, all in the shortest period of time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1952 Swiss Mount Everest expedition</span>

The 1952 Swiss Mount Everest expedition was an attempt to summit Mount Everest. Led by, Edouard Wyss-Dunant, the expedition, which included Tenzing Norgay, reached a height of 8,595 metres (28,199 ft) on the southeast ridge, setting a new climbing altitude record and opening up a new route to Mount Everest and paving the way for further successes by other expeditions. Norgay successfully summited the mountain the following year with Sir Edmund Hillary, the first successful expedition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geneva Spur</span>

The Geneva Spur, named Eperon des Genevois and has also been called the Saddle Rib is a geological feature on Mount Everest—it is a large rock buttress near the summits of Everest and Lhotse. The Geneva spur is above Camp III and the Yellow Band, but before Camp IV and South Col. It is a spur near the south col. A related formation is the saddle between the peaks of Mount Everest and Lhotse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asian Trekking</span>

Asian Trekking is a Nepal-based adventure company, specializing in mountaineering expeditions and trekking in the Himalayas. Started in December 1981 by UIAA Honorary Member Ang Tshering Sherpa, it is Nepal's oldest mountaineering and trekking company still in operation. In 2008, Tshering's son Dawa Steven Sherpa, an environmentalist and mountaineer, took over the leadership of the company and continues to serve as the managing director to this day.

Ng Chun-ting, Elton is a mountaineer, trail athlete and physiotherapist specialising in sports physiotherapy based in Hong Kong. He has been active in mountaineering, orienteering and trail races since 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Everest in 2017</span>

The Mount Everest climbing season of 2017 began in spring with the first climbers reaching the top on May 11, from the north side. The first team on the south side reached the top on May 15. By early June, reports from Nepal indicated that 445 people had made it to the summit from the Nepali side. Reports indicate 160–200 summits on the north side, with 600–660 summiters overall for early 2017. This year had a roughly 50% success rate on that side for visiting climbers, which was down from other years. By 2018, the figure for the number of summiters of Everest was refined to 648. This includes 449 which summited via Nepal and 120 from Chinese Tibet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Uta Ibrahimi</span> Albanian alpinist from Kosovo

Flutura Ibrahimi better known as Uta Ibrahimi is an Albanian alpinist from Kosovo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nirmal Purja</span> Nepalese-British mountaineer

Nirmal Purja is a Nepal-born naturalised British mountaineer. Prior to taking on a career in mountaineering, he served in the British Army with the Brigade of Gurkhas followed by the Special Boat Service (SBS), the special forces unit of the Royal Navy. Purja is notable for having climbed all 14 eight-thousanders in a time of six months and six days with the aid of bottled oxygen. This was a record at the time of climbing, although it was broken in 2023 by Kristin Harila and Tenjen Sherpa, who summitted all 14 eight-thousanders in 92 days. Purja was the first person to reach the summits of Mount Everest, Lhotse and Makalu within 48 hours. In 2021, Purja, along with a team of nine other Nepalese climbers, completed the first winter ascent of K2.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hilaree Nelson</span> American ski mountaineer (1972–2022)

Hilaree Nelson was an American ski mountaineer. She became the first woman to summit two 8000-meter peaks in one 24-hour push on May 25, 2012. On September 30, 2018, Nelson and partner Jim Morrison made the first ski descent of the "Dream Line", the Lhotse Couloir from the summit. Lhotse is the 4th-highest mountain in the world and shares a saddle with Mount Everest.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Carney, John (11 February 2019). "Hong Kong-based mountaineer scales Everest and Lhotse peaks within 24 hours". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  2. "Singularity University's GSP Class of 2014 Blasts Off to the Future". Singularity Hub. 28 August 2014. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  3. Gesellschaft, Oesterreichische Statistische. "Oesterreichische Statistische Gesellschaft". www.osg.or.at (in German). Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  4. "Niel bezwang die Seven Summits". www.nachrichten.at (in German). 27 June 2013. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  5. Griffin, Lindsay. "Dechok Phodrang, Austrian-Spanish Classic & Dechok Direct". publications.americanalpineclub.org. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  6. "Tibetan Dreams (2017)" . Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  7. "Tibetan Dreams - Mountainfilm Graz". www.mountainfilm.com. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  8. "Paul Niel – Tibetan Dreams". Speakers Connect. 2 November 2016. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  9. 1 2 Jacqueline, Rachel (31 December 2014). "Hong Kong rickshaw adventurers hit road to support girls' education in India". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  10. "A tuk tuk road trip across India in aid of charity Educate Girls". South China Morning Post. 11 April 2015. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  11. "May 2018 Winners". Hollywood International Independent Documentary Awards.
  12. Chan, Tessa (8 May 2017). "Hong Kong couple to create coastal pollution map the hard way". South China Morning Post.
  13. Documentary follows couple’s six-day Hong Kong trash tour
  14. The Loop - Mountainfilm Graz 2019
  15. "Hong Kong explorers retrace footsteps of 1920s dinosaur hunter". South China Morning Post. 14 July 2018. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  16. Lo, Zabrina. "How a US Warplane Shot Down in World War II Is Being Unearthed by Hong Kong Experts and Volunteers". Tatler Asia. Retrieved 2023-07-07.
  17. "Hong Kong's 'most violent day': team to dig for shot WWII plane". South China Morning Post. 2021-11-06. Retrieved 2023-07-08.
  18. "Uncovering a lost WW2 plane". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 2023-07-07.
  19. "Explorers Club HK | Paul Niel". Explorers Club HK. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  20. Hong Kong couple’s 13 Unesco sites in a day a world record
  21. Cleaver, Jake (June 6, 2022). "Zaya the Explorer". www.theportugalnews.com. Retrieved 2023-07-08.
  22. "Paul Niel". Premium Speakers. Retrieved 2023-09-01.
  23. "On the Roof of the World: Climbing Everest and Lhotse". Asia Society. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  24. "Paul Niel: Insights on Exponential Organisations". 23 June 2015. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  25. "Paul Niel - Generation T" . Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  26. "Paul Niel - TEDx HongKong". tedxhongkong.org. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  27. "Climbers drawn to uncharted China mountain range". South China Morning Post. 20 November 2014. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  28. "In Lawrence of Arabia's footsteps: the thrill of Jordan's Wadi Rum". South China Morning Post. 26 June 2018. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  29. "Heights of ambition | ActionAsia" . Retrieved 14 February 2019.