German Olympic gold medallist Laura Dahlmeier has been confirmed dead at the age of 31 following a mountaineering accident on Laila Peak in northern Pakistan.
Her agency announced on Wednesday that the former biathlete was fatally struck by falling rocks while climbing at an altitude of 5,700 metres 18,700 feet in the Karakoram mountain range.
Rescue efforts were deemed impossible due to the perilous location and the risk of further rockfalls. "Attempts to retrieve her body had to be suspended," the agency stated.
The fatal incident occurred on Monday around midday. Dahlmeier's climbing partner managed to descend and alert authorities, but aerial rescue was ruled out.
"A helicopter rescue was not feasible," said Areeb Ahmed Mukhtar, a senior official in Ghanche district, who described the conditions as extremely difficult.