Wanda Rutkiewicz, one of the most outstanding female Himalayan climbers in history, reached summit of Mount Everest on 16 October 1978 at 1.45 p.m. This was a date of double significance for Poland, as on the same day Cardinal Karol Wojtyla was elected Pope.

Rutkiewicz was not the first woman reaching it; only two other women, a Japanese and a Chinese woman, had done it before her. Nevertheless, Wanda Rutkiewicz was the first European woman to achieve this goal. No Pole before her had ever achieved that.

Her Everest success was part of an international German-French expedition, led by Dr Karl Herrligkoffer. Rutkiewicz began her attempt on the summit on 9 October, setting off with three other Himalayan climbers. After 6 hours and 15 minutes of climbing from Camp IV, which was located on the South Pass at an altitude of about 7,986 metres above sea level, she reached the summit. She climbed the last 50 metres without oxygen because her oxygen mask covered with ice.

Rutkiewicz proved to be not only an outstanding climber, but also a person of extraordinary determination and organisational skills. Anna Czerwińska, another outstanding Polish Himalayan climber, emphasised that Rutkiewicz was always a step ahead of the rest, both organisationally and in terms of fitness. Czerwińska added that she received a postcard from Rutkiewicz after she had conquered Everest, in which Wanda wrote: “I am in a happy retreat”.

Rutkiewicz was not only involved in climbing; she was also an electronics engineer, a graduate of the Wrocław University of Technology. Before climbing, she played volleyball in the first division. Her climbing career began on the rocks in Sokoliki, near Jelenia Góra, and later moved to the higher peaks of the Tatra Mountains and the Alps.