Sir Edmund Hillary, the first man to set foot “on top ‘o the world”, is dead.
Sir Edmund Hillary, the unassuming beekeeper who conquered Mount Everest to win renown as one of the 20th century’s greatest adventurers, has died, New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark announced Friday. He was 88.
The gangling New Zealander devoted much of his life to aiding the mountain people of Nepal and took his fame in stride, preferring to be called “Ed” and considering himself just an ordinary beekeeper.
“Sir Ed described himself as an average New Zealander with modest abilities. In reality, he was a colossus. He was an heroic figure who not only ‘knocked off’ Everest but lived a life of determination, humility, and generosity,” Clark said in a statement.
“The legendary mountaineer, adventurer, and philanthropist is the best-known New Zealander ever to have lived,” she said.
Oh, and Hillary Clinton copped to the urban legend a little more than a year ago, so she won’t be able to use the mountaineers death for political purposes as a candidate for president. Although I wouldn’t put it past her.