An Everesting with a spinal cord injury? Sounds unrealistic and absurd. And yet Maurice-André set his mind to it: he wanted to give it a go. It was clear to him from the start that he wouldn’t end up with 8848 meters of altitude. But the challenge of collecting vertical meters appealed to him so much that he stood at the starting line of the ALPIN8 Everesting in June 2024.
Maurice-André had a paragliding accident in 2020, which resulted in a fractured vertebrae and paralysis of his lower limbs (both legs and hip). The doctors told him he would have to get used to a wheelchair because he would never be able to walk again. But Maurice-André did not accept this statement, he would not and could not accept it.
After months of therapy and many hundreds of hours of training, he noticed the first changes in his legs. Very slowly, a minimal feeling returned. Spurred on by this progress, Maurice-André did not let up, but was all the more motivated. He realized that there was still something left. If he kept at it and persevered, he might be able to walk on two legs again one day.
First a distance of 500 meters, later: 42 kilometers
A stay in a specialist clinic in the USA and many more hours of training later, Maurice-André is actually back on his feet again, contrary to expectations. With great effort, he manages a distance of 500 meters for the first time. And that’s not all. Maurice-André is now literally so good on his feet again that he regularly takes part in sporting events and is an inspiration to the other participants and spectators. Last year, he ran a marathon in 24 hours at an event: 42 kilometers!
So now a new challenge: no longer “just” running on the flat, but uphill. Steeply uphill. In preparation for ALPIN8, Maurice-André completed 300 meters of ascent on one training day, more than he has ever managed since his accident. An ascent at ALPIN8 has 530 vertical meters and he has set himself at least two of them.
The first ascent starts together with 150 other participants, who set off early in the morning at 05:00 from the Palüdbahn valley station on the way to the summit of their personal Mount Everest. Maurice-André is motivated, walking with his walking aids in the group. However, when he leaves the forest path and enters a narrow path, it becomes much more difficult for him than for the rest of the group. It is wet, slippery, the roots have no grip and the path along the waterfall is steep.
It will be even more difficult for him
Maurice takes a long break at the first refreshment station. It costs him an enormous amount of strength to climb up the rough path. But it is actually about to get even more difficult for him: Because after the station, a steep slope over a ski slope awaits, on which it is very, very slippery after the heavy rainfall of the last few days. He struggles slowly uphill, takes his time and takes it easy. He gets help from the others who overtake him and is also a great inspiration to them: because if Maurice-André gives his all in these conditions, then you have to give it your all too.
When he arrives at the top of Summit Camp after several hours, Maurice-André is quite relieved. He takes a long break, eats, drinks and uses the BLACKROLL recovery lounge. Then it’s back down by cable car for the second ascent.
Due to the weather conditions, the night route is now also open: a forest road that winds its way up the mountain at a relatively even gradient. Perfect for Maurice-André – he feels like he’s on a highway here. Of course, the strain on him is still enormous, but it’s a lot better than on the narrow mountain path.
Completely exhausted, he reaches his second summit
Maurice-André reaches his second summit in the afternoon. One of the things that carried him up was the anticipation of the snacks at Summit Camp. “There were so many delicious things, it was really cool!” Looking at the rainy weather forecast, he decides to take a break in the car, rest and try a third ascent after the worst of the rain, completely exhausted.
But that doesn’t happen. We all know it: when you sit down, your body shuts down and goes into recovery mode, it is sometimes impossible to pick yourself up again and carry on. And when you’ve struggled up the mountain with walking aids for over 1000 meters, this feeling is probably even more overwhelming. Maurice-André later says that all his joints were aching. His wrists, elbows and shoulders from lifting his own body weight, his legs from the unusual strain of walking up the steep mountain.
“Maybe I could have made three or even four ascents”
“It was actually the first ascent up the trail that left me extremely exhausted,” reports Maurice-André afterwards. “If the night route had been open from the start, I might have managed three or even four ascents.”
Either way, his achievement was incredible! And it shows that climbing your own Mount Everest is something very personal for everyone. It doesn’t have to be the 8848 meters of altitude to reach your absolute limits and achieve great things. Maurice-André stood on his own personal Mount Everest after an incredible 1076 meters of altitude. He showed us that despite a spinal cord injury, so much more is possible than others give you credit for. As long as you believe in yourself and work hard, hard.
Text: Saskia Bauer
Images: Marius Holler, Sportograf, private
