VIDEO: Polish daredevil becomes first to ski down K2 mountain
Andrzej Bargiel, 30, filmed zooming down the 28,000ft deadly peak in Pakistan

A Polish man has become the first person to ski from the summit of K2, the second highest mountain in the world and the most difficult to climb.
One in four people die attempting to summit the 28,251ft (8,611 metre) peak, nicknamed Savage Mountain. However, Andrzej Bargiel, 30, not only completed the gruelling climb to the top without the aid of supplementary oxygen - “a feat unto itself,” notes CNN - but then skied back down.
The daring descent on Sunday, which took seven hours, was filmed by his brother using a drone.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
It was Bargiel’s second attempt to ski down K2, located on the Pakistani-Chinese border, after stormy weather and heavy snow forced him to abandon a bid last year.
Following his successful second try, he told CNN: “It’s a very technical descent, leading down the middle of the face, so I’m very happy it turned out well, because I’m here for the second time, and I’m glad I don’t have to come back.”
The news site reports that “compared to the more than 4,000 people that have summited Everest - the world’s tallest mountain at 8,848 m (29,029 ft) - less than 350 people have stood on K2’s peak since it was first topped out in 1954”.
Bargiel is renowned for his daring climbs and descents. National Geographic Poland named him Man of the Year in 2015, in honour of the “record-breaking attempts he had made skiing down peaks including Shishapangma, Manaslu and Broad Peak”, the Daily Mail reports.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Today's political cartoons - April 20, 2025
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - Pam Bondi, retirement planning, and more
By The Week US
-
5 heavy-handed cartoons about ICE and deportation
Cartoons Artists take on international students, the Supreme Court, and more
By The Week US
-
Exploring the three great gardens of Japan
The Week Recommends Beautiful gardens are 'the stuff of Japanese landscape legends'
By The Week UK
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across Syria
THE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weapons
The Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
By Abby Wilson
-
The arrest of the Philippines' former president leaves the country's drug war in disarray
In the Spotlight Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the ICC earlier this month
By Justin Klawans, The Week US
-
Ukrainian election: who could replace Zelenskyy?
The Explainer Donald Trump's 'dictator' jibe raises pressure on Ukraine to the polls while the country is under martial law
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK
-
Why Serbian protesters set off smoke bombs in parliament
THE EXPLAINER Ongoing anti-corruption protests erupted into full view this week as Serbian protesters threw the country's legislature into chaos
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Who is the Hat Man? 'Shadow people' and sleep paralysis
In Depth 'Sleep demons' have plagued our dreams throughout the centuries, but the explanation could be medical
By The Week Staff
-
Why Assad fell so fast
The Explainer The newly liberated Syria is in an incredibly precarious position, but it's too soon to succumb to defeatist gloom
By The Week UK
-
Romania's election rerun
The Explainer Shock result of presidential election has been annulled following allegations of Russian interference
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK