On April 20, 1984 at 6:15 p.m., Hristo Prodanov climbed Mount Everest. Thus, he became the first Bulgarian climber to climb Mount Everest. He was posthumously awarded the order “Hero of the People's Republic of Bulgaria”.
He managed to reach the summit alone without an oxygen apparatus on the most difficult and longest route - the western (Nepalese) slope, also called the “Cruel Road”, climbing the summit from the base camp in 33 days - a record for this route. He is also the first person to climb Everest back in April (too early for the usual summit attacks) and the fourth person to climb alone.
6.15 p.m. A slight crack in the radio station and a voice: "I'm on top, I'm on top — Christ!"
Hurrah! — I hear next to me. I see Kuncho Dolapchiev jump out of the tent and continue to shout outside. People are coming against me, many people — our mountaineers, sherpas, Indian mountaineers, the liaison officer of the Indian expedition, the leader of the Indian expedition... and hands, hands extended in greeting. I only remember that I also shook hands with Colonel Kular and simply flew to Stefcho in the tent with the radio station.
Hristo relays: "Here at the top there is nothing. There is only one small pyramid built of four Soviet oxygen cylinders and the Soviet flag. I'm trying to take a picture but I don't know if the camera is working so I'm aborting."
So in his book "Everest on the Western Ridge" (1987), the leader of the second national expedition to the Himalayas, Avram Avramov, describes one of the historical moments in the history of Bulgarian sports, which combined moments of triumph and tragedy.
Stays on top too long - 33 minutes. From the conversations since then, it is clear that he forgot the Bulgarian flag in a backpack on the slope, that he was wondering what to do with the camera (which he left at the top), that his flares were not working. He tries to tear off a piece of the Soviet flag.
"I struggle to untie the flag and take it with me, but I cannot. There's a little piece here, I'll take it," he says.
His descent from the top along the same dangerous route became one of the great tragedies in Bulgarian sport. He has to spend the night in the open in the "Death Zone", without a sleeping bag and a tent, as it gets too dark and the descent is impossible. On April 21/22, he died at about 8700 m near the so-called Gray Tower.
The lines in the radio station: "Itse, you are a big man, don't fall asleep! You are bulgarian! It's okay, people are running to you. Please don't fall asleep! Don't fall asleep!" in an attempt by the radio operator to keep Prodanov awake until the support from below recreates the drama of those tense hours in the Himalayas to the fullest.
Before realizing the dream of his life, Prodanov says: "My biggest wish is that our expedition ends successfully, that it ends successfully not only with the ascent of any of our climbers, but that all of them are alive and well return to Bulgaria. This will be my greatest success, everything else is ashes.
Ironically, it was he who failed to return alive.
Two weeks later - on May 8, 1984, Ivan Valchev and Metodi Savov climbed to the top, a day after them Kiril Doskov and Nikolay Petkov. To this day, this is the last ascent of the West Ridge.
In 1997, Doichin Vassilev also reached the highest point, and in 2004, Petko Totev, Doichin Boyanov and Nikolay Petkov managed to do it for the second time. Then the peak was also climbed by Hristo Hristov, who, however, died on the way back.
The last two Bulgarians to set foot on Everest were Petya and Kamen Kolchevi in 2009.
In the list of dead Bulgarians, there is another Bulgarian woman below the top - three days after the death of Hristo Hristov, Mariana Maslarova lost her life there.