Skardu:
The authorities abandoned the efforts to recover the body of the German Olympic biathlete Laura Dahlmeier, who died in a mountaineering accident in Pakistan this week.
Dahlmeier was confirmed on Wednesday, after being struck by rocks climbing at an altitude of 5,700 meters (18,700 feet) on Laila Peak in the Karakoram chain.
Attempts to recover his body were abandoned, the Dahlmeier management agency announced on Thursday.
Several of Dahlmeier’s colleagues have confirmed that the double Olympic gold medalist said that she did not want her body to be restored if he putting potential rescuers in danger.
German mountaineer Thomas Huber was part of a team that had tried a rescue but told journalists on Thursday: “We decided that she should stay because it was her wish.”
Another member of the rescue team, American Jackson Marvell, told AFP that he would be “disrespectful” to recover his body contrary to his wishes.
Marvell said that “Laura’s body recovery will be possible, but it involves incredible risks, 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 had not moved after being taken in a rock fall.
“I saw Laura being touched by a huge rock, then being thrown against the wall. And from that moment, she did not move,” 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 the only way to help him was to call a helicopter. She did not move, she did not show any sign (of movement). I called her, but there was no answer.”
Dahlmeier won seven gold medals in the world championship, and at the 2018 winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, she became the first woman biathlete to win the sprint and the pursuit in the same games.
