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American Morning
50 Years on Top
Aired May 29, 2003 - 10:32 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Mountains, every mountain withstands the test of time for sure, but rarely does an accomplishment of man. One exception is not only noted, but celebrated on the breathtaking slopes of Mt. Everest. It was 50 years ago today that sir Edmund Hillary and Tensang Norgay conquered the most daunting summit in the world.
CNN's Satinder Bindra joins us now via videophone from Katmandu, Nepal.
Hello, Satinder. Good to see you.
SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good to see you, Leon.
Yes, celebrations to mark that event 50 years ago today are ongoing. We've had several ceremonies. Right now, I'm at one hosted by Sir Edmund Hillary and his trust, the Immalian (ph) Trust. Over the past few years, he's been trying to help the mountain people here, called the Sherpas.
And this morning, Leon, I witnessed something very emotional, something very touching and beautiful.
Sir Edmund Hillary, a hero in these parts, was given the highest honor that Nepal could bestow on anybody. He was made an honorary citizen.
Now, to talk more about what this means to the climbing community across the world, I'm joined by Pat Falvey. He's an Irish climber, and you've been celebrating along with everyone else. I notice you've been given an honor, this medal.
What does this honor mean to you?
PAT FALVEY, IRISH CLIMBER: Well, it means a huge amount, because basically Sir Edmund Hillary is honored across the world by mountaineers, and to see that Nepal has actually honored him for his first climb 50 years guys is absolutely enormous, and hundreds and hundreds of climbers from around the world have come here just to see him being honored, because he's now an old man now, and he's absolutely fantastic. And maybe he won't be around for another 25 years.
So for those in climbing, you know, it's absolutely fantastic to see him being honored, and the accolades he's been given today here in Nepal. BINDRA: Sir Edmund said just a short while ago that it wasn't just about climbing mountains. His job and his mission was to help the people of Nepal. He's built them schools. He's established hospitals here.
FALVEY: And that is what it's all about. Climbers are actually environmentalists. Climbers are actually people that care about people.
And here we are, like you know, everybody actually in support of what he's doing, and we make a plea to the world to actually help out in this.
BINDRA: Thank you very much, Pat. So, there you go, Leon. The festivities will continue throughout the night.
Back to you know.
HARRIS: All right, thank you, Satinder. Satinder Bindra reporting live for us from Katmandu, Nepal.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired May 29, 2003 - 10:32 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Mountains, every mountain withstands the test of time for sure, but rarely does an accomplishment of man. One exception is not only noted, but celebrated on the breathtaking slopes of Mt. Everest. It was 50 years ago today that sir Edmund Hillary and Tensang Norgay conquered the most daunting summit in the world.
CNN's Satinder Bindra joins us now via videophone from Katmandu, Nepal.
Hello, Satinder. Good to see you.
SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good to see you, Leon.
Yes, celebrations to mark that event 50 years ago today are ongoing. We've had several ceremonies. Right now, I'm at one hosted by Sir Edmund Hillary and his trust, the Immalian (ph) Trust. Over the past few years, he's been trying to help the mountain people here, called the Sherpas.
And this morning, Leon, I witnessed something very emotional, something very touching and beautiful.
Sir Edmund Hillary, a hero in these parts, was given the highest honor that Nepal could bestow on anybody. He was made an honorary citizen.
Now, to talk more about what this means to the climbing community across the world, I'm joined by Pat Falvey. He's an Irish climber, and you've been celebrating along with everyone else. I notice you've been given an honor, this medal.
What does this honor mean to you?
PAT FALVEY, IRISH CLIMBER: Well, it means a huge amount, because basically Sir Edmund Hillary is honored across the world by mountaineers, and to see that Nepal has actually honored him for his first climb 50 years guys is absolutely enormous, and hundreds and hundreds of climbers from around the world have come here just to see him being honored, because he's now an old man now, and he's absolutely fantastic. And maybe he won't be around for another 25 years.
So for those in climbing, you know, it's absolutely fantastic to see him being honored, and the accolades he's been given today here in Nepal. BINDRA: Sir Edmund said just a short while ago that it wasn't just about climbing mountains. His job and his mission was to help the people of Nepal. He's built them schools. He's established hospitals here.
FALVEY: And that is what it's all about. Climbers are actually environmentalists. Climbers are actually people that care about people.
And here we are, like you know, everybody actually in support of what he's doing, and we make a plea to the world to actually help out in this.
BINDRA: Thank you very much, Pat. So, there you go, Leon. The festivities will continue throughout the night.
Back to you know.
HARRIS: All right, thank you, Satinder. Satinder Bindra reporting live for us from Katmandu, Nepal.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
