At age 62, wood floor pro Liliya Ianovskaia became the oldest woman to ever scale K2, the second-highest mountain on earth.
Ianovskaia also became the first Belarusian person and the first Canadian woman to reach the summit of K2.Liliya Ianovskaia of Coswick Hardwood in Mississauga, Ontario, didn’t realize she’d made climbing history when she reached the summit of K2 and, at age 62, became the oldest woman to ever scale the second-highest mountain on earth. Not only was she the oldest woman, she was also the first Belarusian person and the first Canadian woman. She hadn’t set out to break any records, however, and she knew the odds of reaching the “savage” peak, considered by those in the mountaineering world to be more dangerous than Everest, were slim. “While on the mountain, I focused only on getting to the top and on descending back safely,” Ianovskaia says. “There was no time to think of anything else.” As prepared as she was for the task, Ianovskaia faced a near-death experience on her descent when, exhausted, she nearly succumbed to the urge to sit down and rest, “the one thing that one must not do in this situation, as the risk of not waking up and of freezing to death is very real,” she says. Fortunately, another climber appeared “seemingly out of nowhere” and pleaded with her to continue on. “He shared his last water with me, and I shared my last protein bar with him, and together we made it down to base camp,” Ianovskaia says. “I believe I owe my life to him.” She made it down the rest of the way safely, and the only things broken were records. Although she’s had a lifelong fascination with climbing, Ianovskaia didn’t climb her first mountain until after age 50. Since then, she has become an avid climber, summiting K2, Gasherbrum II and Everest in 2022. Her approach to climbing in many ways mirrored her entry into the wood flooring industry. In 1995, she launched Coswick Hardwood with her husband, Vladimir, in Zaslavl, Belarus, later relocating to Canada. “I was neither a flooring pro when I got into the trade, nor a trained athlete when I started mountaineering,” Ianovskaia says. “Making progress required discipline, meticulous planning, as well as an honest, sober assessment of strengths, weaknesses, risks and opportunities. And, of course, it requires passion and … a considerable leap of faith.” Now 63, Ianovskaia says she plans on continuing to make that leap of faith above the clouds: “There are countless other peaks that I would love to scale.”
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Ianovskaia also became the first Belarusian person and the first Canadian woman to reach the summit of K2.Liliya Ianovskaia of Coswick Hardwood in Mississauga, Ontario, didn’t realize she’d made climbing history when she reached the summit of K2 and, at age 62, became the oldest woman to ever scale the second-highest mountain on earth. Not only was she the oldest woman, she was also the first Belarusian person and the first Canadian woman. She hadn’t set out to break any records, however, and she knew the odds of reaching the “savage” peak, considered by those in the mountaineering world to be more dangerous than Everest, were slim. “While on the mountain, I focused only on getting to the top and on descending back safely,” Ianovskaia says. “There was no time to think of anything else.” As prepared as she was for the task, Ianovskaia faced a near-death experience on her descent when, exhausted, she nearly succumbed to the urge to sit down and rest, “the one thing that one must not do in this situation, as the risk of not waking up and of freezing to death is very real,” she says. Fortunately, another climber appeared “seemingly out of nowhere” and pleaded with her to continue on. “He shared his last water with me, and I shared my last protein bar with him, and together we made it down to base camp,” Ianovskaia says. “I believe I owe my life to him.” She made it down the rest of the way safely, and the only things broken were records. Although she’s had a lifelong fascination with climbing, Ianovskaia didn’t climb her first mountain until after age 50. Since then, she has become an avid climber, summiting K2, Gasherbrum II and Everest in 2022. Her approach to climbing in many ways mirrored her entry into the wood flooring industry. In 1995, she launched Coswick Hardwood with her husband, Vladimir, in Zaslavl, Belarus, later relocating to Canada. “I was neither a flooring pro when I got into the trade, nor a trained athlete when I started mountaineering,” Ianovskaia says. “Making progress required discipline, meticulous planning, as well as an honest, sober assessment of strengths, weaknesses, risks and opportunities. And, of course, it requires passion and … a considerable leap of faith.” Now 63, Ianovskaia says she plans on continuing to make that leap of faith above the clouds: “There are countless other peaks that I would love to scale.”
As challenging as summiting a mountain like K2 is, the most dangerous part of such a climb is the descent, Ianovskaia says.
George Bell, a climber on an 1953 American expedition to K2, called the deadly peak "The Savage Mountain," and the name stuck.
Now 63, Ianovskaia plans to continue following her passion for climbing above the clouds.
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Ianovskaia also became the first Belarusian person and the first Canadian woman to reach the summit of K2.
