Galway man on top of the world after conquering Mount Everest for charity

A grueling two year fitness campaign paid off for 29-year old Galway man Peter O’Connell when he became the first Connacht person in history to reach the summit of Mount Everest in the early hours of Monday morning.

After a treacherous climb through the “death zone” at Camp Four, guided by a local sherpa, the Killererin native became only the 33rd Irish person to reach the highest point on earth.

Peter, who has maintained regular contact with his friends and family through social networking site Facebook, was able to post his achievement within hours after news of his successful climb was first circulated by an Australian climber, Chris Jensen, who is part of his climbing team.

An emotional Peter, who has raised over €23,000 so far for Pieta House, dedicated his climb to his late cousin Lorcan Kelly and thanked all of those who have supported his fundraising attempts over the past few months.

“Success, summit! Today I stand on the summit of Mount Everest! With desire to achieve and determination to succeed, there are no limites to where you can go!” he told his cousin Marita Fahy via satellite phone upon his return to Camp Two on Tuesday.

He spent six weeks acclimatising on the mountain before setting out on a final five day assault last Thursday.

See full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune.