Kristin Harila

bremont ambassador

PROFESSIONAL ATHLETE ATTEMPTING ‘BREMONT 14 PEAKS’

ABOUT KRISTIN HARILA

Kristin Harila is a 36 year old professional athlete from Norway. A former cross-country skier, Kristin currently runs her own guiding company and leads ski expeditions in the arctic.

In May 2021, she set a world record becoming the fastest woman to climb Mount Everest and Lhotse in less than twelve hours. Her success in previous expeditions and summit attempts has inspired her to embark upon her latest challenge, ‘Bremont 14 Peaks’, a monumental effort to become the first woman in history and the second person ever to climb all 14 peaks above 8,000m in just 6 months. Only 44 people in history have summited all 14 peaks, in completing this challenge Kristin would also become the first person to do so from a Scandanavian country.

the bremont q&a

Q&A

WHAT DOES TIME MEAN TO YOU?
“I have had some deaths in my close family and when this happens you get a stark reminder of reality; that the time we have is limited. Therefore, it is important to spend time doing the things that you are extremely passionate about and want to do. I am, in many ways, a breakaway who like to disrupt traditional expectations. I want to do the crazy, the impossible and the extraordinary. You could call that adventure. Time also has something to do with different periods of one’s life. In the short years that I have lived I have had many different lives. From being a driver, professional cross-country skier and prison officer, and now a mountaineer.”

HOW DO YOU SPEND YOUR TIME?
“Challenges. Solving impossible tasks. Sometimes I ask myself: Why can I not choose a simpler life? Why do I always have to the choose the hardest part? I find fulfilment in experiencing the results of what I am able to accomplish.”

the bremont q&a

WHAT DRIVES YOU TO WANT TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS?
“I get peace of mind in nature and on this type of trip. It may also have something to do with having a genuine curiosity about life. To enter with open eyes and an open mind and not least, to take advantage of your own potential. Børge Ousland said that a feeling of mastery is an underestimated driving force in everyone. That we humans like to be good at something. Overcome difficult challenges and gain recognition for a good job. To succeed you must believe in yourself and that what you are doing is right.”

WHAT HAS BEEN THE MOST TESTING TIME FOR YOU ON THE MOUNTAINS?
“There was one moment where we thought we were going to die. It was in Nepal during a climb on Dhaulagiri VII, also called Putha Hiunchuli at 7,246 metres when we were taken by a storm at Camp 2. We were only three climbers and a guide and there was no organized programme. We spent a total of 19 hours reaching the top and down to basecamp in the most extreme conditions. After that trip I did not feel my toes for half a year.”

THE BREMONT Q&A

WHAT IS THE ATTEMPT TO COMPLETE ‘BREMONT 14 PEAKS’ SO SPECIAL TO YOU?

“It is in these high mountains where I have realised my true strengths, after setting a world record in 2021, this is what I care about the most. I think that gender equality has fallen short in many areas and in this environment there are almost only men. This gave me the motivation for a much bigger goal. More recently Nepalese climber Nimsdai set a world record by summiting all 14 of the world’s tallest peaks, in six months and six days. The previous record was a full seven years. Now I aim to show that it is possible for a woman to do the same and hopefully in a shorter time.”