Daisy Voog (born 28 January 1932), later known as Daisy Leidig, is an Estonian-German mountain climber. She is best known as the first woman to ascend the north face of the

Eiger The Eiger () is a mountain of the Bernese Alps, overlooking Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen in the Bernese Oberland of Switzerland, just north of the main watershed and border with Valais. It is the easternmost peak of a ridge crest that extends a ...

in 1964.

Biography

Voog was born 1932 in Tallinn, Estonia, and fled to Germany in 1944, settling in Munich in 1952. In her youth she was an athlete, competing in 800 metres running events and training to join the Olympic

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...

team. She took up climbing while living in Munich and eventually won a gold medal in a Bavarian rock climbing competition. She aspired to become a physical education teacher but found the salary insufficient, so she became a secretary instead, working at

Junkers Junkers Flugzeug- und Motorenwerke AG (JFM, earlier JCO or JKO in World War I, English: Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works) more commonly Junkers , was a major German aircraft and aircraft engine manufacturer. It was founded there in Dessau, Germ ...

, an aircraft manufacturer, from 1956 until August 1964. She served as a secretary for the company's owner, Erhard Junkers, with whom she was reported to have had a romantic relationship. Voog began climbing in 1959, primarily in the Dolomites range of the Alps. Her early climbs included Wildspitze (1959), Königspitze (1961) and

Cinque Torri Cinque Torri (sometimes named also ''Cinque Torri di Averau''; german: Fünf Türme) comprise a small rock formation belonging to Nuvolao group in the Dolomiti Ampezzane (part of the Eastern Dolomites) north-west of San Vito di Cadore and so ...

(1963). She achieved national fame on 4 September 1964, when she became the first woman to ascend the

's north face, which she climbed via the Heckmair route with Werner Bittner. The Eiger was one of numerous alpine ascents she made in 1964, others included Predigstuhl, Gurrwand, Torre Venezia, Torre Trieste, Kleinste Zinne and Kleine Zinne,

Monte Civetta Monte Civetta (3,220 m) is a prominent and major mountain of the Dolomites, in the Province of Belluno in northern Italy. Its north-west face can be viewed from the Taibon Agordino valley, and is classed as one of the symbols of the Dolomites ...

, Marmolada, and Piz Lasties. Shortly after her ascent of the Eiger, charges were brought against Voog by her former employer, Erhard Junkers, who alleged that she had stolen over 10,000 Deutsche Mark and a car from his company. In June 1965, she was convicted of embezzlement, fraud, and breach of trust by a court in Munich, and was sentenced to nine months of probation. Her conviction caused extensive controversy in the media; headlines included "''Skandal um die 'Eiger-Königin" ("Scandal involving the 'Eiger Queen'") and "''Nordwand-Bezwingerin Daisy Voog wegen Unterschlagung angezeigt!''" ("North wall conqueror Daisy Voog reported for embezzlement!"). In 1966, Voog continued climbing with an ascent of

Schüsselkarspitze The Schüsselkarspitze is a peak in the eastern Wetterstein Mountains. It is one of the best-known climbing peaks in the Northern Limestone Alps. It has a multitude of challenging climbing routes, especially through the mighty slabs (''Plattenfluc ...

via the southeast face. Little is known of her later career and her ascent of the Eiger has been reported as her only major alpine feat.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Voog, Daisy 1932 births Living people Estonian female cross-country skiers German mountain climbers Sportspeople from Tallinn Sportspeople from Munich Estonian World War II refugees Estonian emigrants to Germany German female cross-country skiers West German female cross-country skiers