Italian mountain climber Simone Moro and his colleague Denis Urubko of Kazakhstan on Monday completed the first-ever winter ascent of Himalayan giant Makalu, the world's fifth highest peak.
The two-man team reached the summit despite extremely strong winds, conquering the peak above 8,000 metres on the Nepali side of the mountain range never before climbed out of season.
''At the top there was a wind that blew us away,'' an elated Moro told the climbing website montagna.tv.
''It was a real struggle, but we gritted our teeth. When we set out it was minus 40, but we didn't give up.
''Now we are in the tent (back at the final camp at 7,700 metres) and outside there's a hellish gale. Denis and I are well and we don't have any frostbite. Tonight we'll sleep here. Tomorrow morning as soon as the sun comes up we'll come down and return to base camp,'' he said.
Mountaineers have been trying to make a winter ascent of the 8,462-metre Makalu for 30 years, but the peak known as The Big Black has foiled some of the world's best climbers.
Among those who it defeated are Italian great Reinhold Messner, who tried the climb twice, and French mountaineer Jean-Christophe Lafaille, who disappeared during a solo attempt in 2006.
Urubko had to renege on a winter ascent of the peak last year because of an ice storm and strong winds that lifted him up into the air and flew him 7-8 metres at a time.
Makalu is located 22 km (14 miles) east of Mount Everest, on the border between Nepal and China, and is shaped like a four-sided pyramid that casts a huge shadow, giving it its nickname.
Bergamo-born Moro, 41, was the first man in the world to climb another 8,000-metre Himalayan peak, Shisha Pangma, during winter.
Observers say he is now likely to turn his attention to winter ascents of the peaks on the Pakistani side of the Himalayas, where mountains such as K2 and Nanga Parbat have never been climbed out of season.