'Irish Times' journalist summits north face of Everest

The Irish Timesjournalist Grania Willis has become the first Irish woman to summit the north face of Mount Everest.

Willis reached the Himalayan peak - 29,000 feet above sea level - at 3.45am today and has now returned to Camp Four.

She is understood to be in good health and overjoyed at her achievement.

She was the only Irish representative in a team of mountaineers, led by New Zealander Russell Brice.

Willis, who is the equestrian correspondent of The Irish Times, became the first Irish woman to reach the summit of the sixth-highest mountain in the world, the Tibetan peak Cho Oyu, at 8,201 metres, last September.