Czech climbers Marek Holeček and Tomáš Petreček are beginning their attempt at the first ascent of a new route on the South Rupal Face of the 8,000-meter Nanga Parbat (8,126 m). This is according to a post by Marek Holeček on Facebook today, in which he stated that after waiting for suitable weather, the pair is now setting out on the face.

According to Mára, the ascent should take about eight days. The climbers face an elevation gain of around 4,500 meters from the glacier to the summit, with the most difficult climbing, he says, coming right at the start. They have chosen a new route that intersects the Polish route from 1985 two-thirds of the way up the face, but then branches off from it again and leads to the summit on the right.

Mára Holeček noted that he is returning to Nanga Parbat after previous unsuccessful attempts—eight years ago, he and Tomáš Petreček turned back about 300 meters below the summit due to deteriorating weather, and fifteen years ago, his solo attempt ended approximately 700 meters below the summit. According to him, regular updates from the face cannot be expected in the coming days.