Mountain guides confirmed that Adèle Milloz, 26, and her climbing partner, 30, fell to their deaths on Friday before 6.15pm on the route to Aiguille du Peigne. The climbers were above 10,000 feet, crossing the Aiguille du Peigne to the Aiguille du Midi. Other climbers saw the two fall and called for help. They then stopped their own ascent due to shock and were pulled off the mountain. Ms Milloz grew up in Tignes, in the Alps, and won gold in individual and team sprint ski mountaineering at the Military World Winter Games in Sochi five years ago. He had retired from competitive sports and was training to become a mountain guide. The circumstances surrounding the crash are unknown and an investigation is underway. Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, the French Minister of Sport and Olympics, tweeted a tribute to Ms Milloz. The tragic death occurred on Mont Blanc in the French Alps (Getty Images) He said: “Deeply saddened by the death of ski mountaineering champion Adèle Milloz on Mont Blanc, aged 26, and the woman by her side. “My deepest condolences to her family, loved ones and colleagues at the Chamonix National Skiing and Mountaineering School.” The summit of Mont Blanc is notoriously dangerous, particularly the Goûter route from Saint-Gervais-les-Bains which takes climbers to the summit of the highest peak in western Europe. Earlier this month, Jean-Marc Peillex, the town’s mayor, said climbers who hike to the summit would have to pay 15,000 euros (£12,600) to cover the cost of their own rescue missions if they become trapped or die. It comes after the route was reported to be extremely dry, resulting in large amounts of rock creating dangerous conditions for climbers. More than 100 people have lost their lives on the route in the last 20 years.
