27 March 2009

Young climber honoured by Sir Ranulph Fiennes and Ordnance Survey

Sir Ranulph Fiennes has today honoured a six-year-old climber at The Ordnance Survey Outdoors Show.

Often called the world’s greatest living explorer, Sir Ranulph met Tom Fryers, who is the youngest person ever to climb all 214 summits in the Wainwright Guides to the Lake District.

Tom, a pupil at Oxspring Primary School in Oxspring near Sheffield, said:

“I feel very proud to have met Sir Ranulph Fiennes and I was very excited about it. He is a brilliant explorer and the things he's done are fantastic. He was able to tell me about some of his amazing adventures.”

Tom undertook the climbs to raise money for Community Action Nepal and the neonatal intensive care unit at the hospital in Sheffield, where he was treated as a baby. He has climbed over 150,000 feet and walked over 480 miles in pursuit of his goal and raised over £5,500.

Sir Ranulph was the first man to reach both the north and south poles by surface means and the first to cross Antarctica on foot. The veteran explorer presented Tom with a signed copy of his book ‘Beyond the Limits’.

Ordnance Survey Director General and Chief Executive Vanessa Lawrence CB said: “Tom’s achievement is outstanding and one in which he should be very proud. The Wainwrights are a daunting challenge for anyone, and to have climbed over 200 peaks by the age six is a remarkable feat.  Ordnance Survey is pleased to be celebrating his success and I was delighted to present him with a unique map made especially for him, showing the highest peaks in the Lake District.”

Note to editors

Further information on Tom Fryers’ fundraising is at www.justgiving.co.uk/tomfryers for Community Action Nepal and www.justgiving.co.uk/tomfryers2 for Sheffield Hospitals Charitable Trust.

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Senior Communications & PR Officer - Melanie Osborne

Email: melanie.osborne@ordnancesurvey.co.uk

Phone: (+44) 023 8005 5062

Senior Communications & PR Officer - Paul Beauchamp

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