Junko Tabei (born Ishibashi Junko; 22 September 1939 - 20 October 2016) was a Japanese mountaineer. She was the first woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest, located between Nepal and China, and the first woman to ascend all the Seven Summits by climbing the highest peak on every continent.
Tabei, a 4ft 9ins mother-of-two from a small town in Fukushima prefecture, undoubtedly changed the landscape of Japanese mountaineering. She founded the Ladies Climbing Club – the first for women in Japan – in 1969 with the slogan: “Let’s go on an overseas expedition by ourselves.”
Tabei, a 4ft 9ins mother-of-two from a small town in Fukushima prefecture, undoubtedly changed the landscape of Japanese mountaineering. She founded the Ladies Climbing Club – the first for women in Japan – in 1969 with the slogan: “Let’s go on an overseas expedition by ourselves.”