Biography
Kenton Cool graduated from the University of Leeds in 1994 after studying BSc Geological Sciences. Cool was first introduced to mountaineering at Scouts where he read about the first ascent on Mount Everest in 1953 by Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay. An obsession with rock climbing developed at Leeds University and, on graduating, he moved to Sheffield to pursue this further.
In 1996, he suffered a fall from a rock face and shattered both heel bones. A year of surgery and therapy saw him become determined to regain his climbing form and he joined the British Mountain Guides scheme. Cool is now based in the Alps and Greater Ranges of the Himalaya as a fully qualified IFMGA Guide and Expedition Leader.
In 2003, Cool was nominated alongside climbing partners for the Piolet d'Or award for a route on Annapurna III. In October 2006, Cool was the first British person to complete a ski descent of an 8,000 metre peak, on Cho Oyu in Nepal, the 6th highest mountain in the World.
In March 2007, Cool led polar explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes on a successful attempt of the North face of The Eiger. In May 2008, Cool and Fiennes attempted to summit Mount Everest but Fiennes turned back 300m from the top. In 2009, Cool returned to Everest and successfully led Sir Ranulph Fiennes to the top, making Kenton the most successful British Expedition Leader on the mountain. These expeditions raised nearly £5 million for the Marie Curie Cancer Care charity.As an Expedition Leader, Cool has completed 18 successful expeditions in the Greater Ranges. His Everest record stands testament to this, holding the highest success rate of any Mountain Guide. He has personally reached the summit of Everest nine times, in May 2007 he summitted twice in one week.
Annually, Cool provides a series of speaking events for the Royal Geographical Society and various outdoor clothing manufacturers and retailers as well as keynote speeches at corporate conferences. He is also regularly invited to sit on specialist panels. At these events, he heavily supports and promotes Porters Progress, a foundation set up to support the mountain portering community in Nepal.
On 6th May 2011 Kenton became the focus on the world's media for making a record-breaking 'first tweet' from a mobile phone on the summit of Everest.
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