Vitaly Mikhaylovich Abalakov () ( – 26 May 1986

Great Russian Encyclopedia The ''Great Russian Encyclopedia'' (''GRE''; , БРЭ, transliterated as ''Bolshaya rossiyskaya entsiklopediya'' or academically as ''Bol'šaja rossijskaja ènciklopedija'') is a universal Russian encyclopedia, completed in 36 volumes, publishe ...

(2006),

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

: Bol'shaya Rossiyskaya Enciklopediya Publisher, vol. 1, p. 9) was a

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

chemical engineer A chemical engineer is a professional equipped with the knowledge of chemistry and other basic sciences who works principally in the chemical industry to convert basic raw materials into a variety of Product (chemistry), products and deals with ...

mountaineer Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become sports ...

and

inventor An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea, or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...

. Brother of

Yevgeniy Abalakov Yevgeniy Mikhaylovich Abalakov (; 23 March 1948Great Russian Encyclopedia (2006), Moscow: Bol'shaya Rossiyskaya Enciklopediya Publisher, vol. 1, p. 9) was a Soviet mountaineer and sculptor. Abalakov was born in Yeniseysk. He is noted for making ...

, another famous

alpinist Alpine climbing () is a type of mountaineering that uses any of a broad range of advanced climbing skills, including rock climbing, ice climbing, and/or mixed climbing, to summit typically large routes (e.g. multi-pitch or big wall) in an alpi ...

, he made the first Soviet ascent of

Lenin Peak Lenin Peak or Ibn Sina (Avicenna) Peak (, ; ; , renamed () in July 2006
(Tajik); for Russian tex
Khan Tengri Khan Tengri is a mountain of the Tian Shan mountain range in Central Asia. It is on the China—Kyrgyzstan—Kazakhstan tripoint, east of lake Issyk-Kul, Issyk Kul in Kyrgyzstan. Its geologic elevation is , but its glacial icecap rises to ...

, where he lost several fingers on one arm and one-third of his foot. In 1938, he and others from his team were arrested by

NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (, ), abbreviated as NKVD (; ), was the interior ministry and secret police of the Soviet Union from 1934 to 1946. The agency was formed to succeed the Joint State Political Directorate (OGPU) se ...

and were under investigation until 1940. He was accused of "open public propaganda" of western mountaineering techniques and "diminishing" domestic alpinists' achievements and being a "German spy". Abalakov is credited with such inventions as camming devices in the 1930s, Abalakov thread (or V-thread), gearless ice climbing anchor, and many other climbing equipment innovations.

Awards

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (, ) was an award named after Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the October Revolution. It was established by the Central Executive Committee on 6 April 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration bestowed by the Soviet ...

(1957) *

Order of the Badge of Honour The Order of the Badge of Honour () was a civilian award of the Soviet Union. It was established on 25 November 1935, and was conferred on citizens of the USSR for outstanding achievements in sports, production, scientific research and socia ...

(1972) *

Honoured Master of Sports of the USSR Unified All-Russian Sports Classification () is a system which regulates the Russian physical education system requirements for both athletes and coaches. History In the Soviet period Unified Sports Classification System of the USSR () exist ...

(1943) * ''Honoured Trainer of the USSR'' (1961)

Bibliography

*
Расстрельное время

References

1906 births 1986 deaths People from Krasnoyarsk People from Yeniseysk Governorate Soviet chemical engineers Russian inventors Soviet inventors 20th-century engineers Soviet explorers Soviet mountain climbers 20th-century Russian explorers Spartak (sports society) sportspeople D. Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology of Russia alumni Honoured Masters of Sport of the USSR Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Badge of Honour Recipients of the Order of Friendship of Peoples Burials at Kuntsevo Cemetery {{Russia-climbing-bio-stub

Awards

See also

Bibliography

References