Skardu:
Authorities have left the efforts to regain the body of the German Olympic skiing Laura Dahlmeier, who died in a mountaineering accident in Pakistan this week.
Dahlmeier was confirmed dead Wednesday, after being hit by falling cliffs while climbing at an altitude of 5,700 meters (18,700 feet) on the Laila Peak in the Karakoram area.
Attempting to regain her body was abandoned, said Dahlmeier’s Management Agency on Thursday.
Several of Dahlmeier’s colleagues confirmed the two-time Olympic gold medal had said she did not want her body to recover if it put any rescuers in danger.
German mountaineer Thomas Huber was part of a team that had tried a rescue but told journalists on Thursday: “We decided she should stay because it was her desire.”
Another member of the rescue team, American Jackson Marvell, told AFP that it would be “disrespectful” to recover her body as opposed to her desires.
Marvell said “Restoring of Laura’s body will be possible, but it involves incredible risks, both on foot and by helicopter”.
Dahlmeier’s climbing partner Marina Krauss, who was with her at the time of the incident, said at a press conference on Thursday that the former Olympian was not moving after being caught in a Rockfall.
“I saw Laura being hit by a huge cliff and then being thrown against the wall. And from that moment she didn’t move again,” Krauss told journalists.
Krauss said she was unable to reach Dahlmeier and called for external support.
“It was impossible for me to get there safely.
“It was clear to me that the only way to help her was to call a helicopter. She did not move, she did not show any signs (of movement). I cried to her but there was no answer.”
Dahlmeier won seven World Cup gold medals, and by winter -ol 2018 in Pyeongchang, she became the first woman crooked to win both the sprint and the pursuit of the same games.
