Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay

On 29 May 1953 New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, a Sherpa mountaineer, reached the summit of Mount Everest (about 8,849 m) as part of a British expedition led by John Hunt. They stayed only about 15 minutes at the top.

Whether George Mallory and Andrew Irvine reached the summit before dying in 1924 is still unknown, so 1953 is the first ascent that is confirmed.