Reinhold Messner (born 1944) is the first people ever to climb all 14 of the world's mountain peaks over 8,000 meters high. He has written over 30 books on his adventures, and his minimalist techniques have revolutionized Himalayan mountain climbing.

Internationally known mountain climber Reinhold Messner was born in the Tyrolean Alps in 1944, the second child in a family of eight brothers and one sister. He began climbing at a very early age, ascending his first mountain at the age of four with his father.

In 1970, when he was 25, Messner climbed his first 8,000-meter peak, Nanga Parbat in the Himalayas. Tragedy struck during the climb when Messner's brother Gunther was killed in an avalanche. Although Messner searched extensively for his brother, losing six toes to frostbite in the process, he never found him. Despite his great loss, he continued to climb, next summiting Manaslu in central Nepal.

For Messner these early climbs...