Catawba – Rhododendron catawbiense

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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] In 1997, she became the first Australian woman to summit Mount Everest and climb the Seven Summits.

Early life and education

Muir was born Brigitte Koch in Ougrée, Belgium.

Climbing career

In 1986, Muir, along with her then-husband Jon Muir and friend Graeme Hill, completed 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 climb the Seven Summits.[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

  • Australian Geographic Society Spirit of Adventure Awards, 1997[13]
  • Australia Day Achievers Award 1998
  • Order of Australia Medal, for services to mountaineering, 2000[14]
  • Centenary Medal, For service to Australia through mountaineering, 2001[15]
  • First Victorian Honour Roll of Women, 2001

Bibliography

  • Ross MacDowell, Inside Story. 20 Famous Australians Tell Their Story, Hobson Dell, Brighton,2001
  • Susan Geason, Australian Heroines, stories of courage and survival, ABC Books, Sydney, 2001
  • Martin Flanagan, Faces in the Crowd, One Day Hill, 2004
  • Everest. Reflections from the Top. Edited by Christine Gee, Garry Weare and Margaret Gee, Rider, 2003.

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. ^ a b 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".

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