Lynn Hill (born 1961) is an American rock climber. Widely regarded as one of the leading competitive sport climbers in the world during the late 1980s and early 1990s, she made the first ascent without aid of the difficult sheer rock face of The Nose on El Capitan in Yosemite Valley and the first free ascent in 24 hours. Hill shaped rock climbing for women and became a public spokesperson, helping it gain wider popularity and arguing for gender equity. She has publicized climbing by appearing on television shows and documentaries and writing an autobiography, Climbing Free: My Life in the Vertical World. She took to climbing at a young age and became a part of the climbing community in Southern California and Camp 4 in Yosemite Valley. During the early 1980s, she traveled around the United States, climbing increasingly difficult routes and setting records not only for first female ascents but also for first ascents. From 1986 to 1992 she won over thirty international titles, including five victories at the Arco Rock Master; she left competitive climbing in 1992. She has been described as both one of the best female climbers in the world and one of the best climbers of all time.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynn_Hill
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1579:
Explorer Francis Drake landed in a region of present-day California, naming it New Albion and claiming it for England. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Albion
1843:
New Zealand Wars: An armed posse of Europeans set out from Nelson to arrest Ngāti Toa chief Te Rauparaha and clashed with Māori, resulting in 26 deaths. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wairau_Affray
1900:
Boxer Rebellion: Allied naval forces captured the Taku Forts after a brief but bloody battle. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Dagu_Forts_(1900)
1972:
Five men were arrested for attempted burglary on the offices of the Democratic National Committee in the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C., igniting the Watergate scandal that ultimately led to the resignation of U.S. President Richard Nixon more than two years later. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate_complex
1982:
The body of Italian banker Roberto Calvi, known as "God's Banker" due to his close association with the Vatican, was found hanging from scaffolding beneath London's Blackfriars Bridge. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Calvi
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
postilion: A rider mounted on the near, leading horse pulling a carriage who guides the team. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/postilion
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
The global community has become irreversibly interdependent, with the constant movement of people, ideas, goods and resources. In such a world, we must combat terrorism with an infectious security culture that crosses borders — an inclusive approach to security based on solidarity and the value of human life. In such a world, weapons of mass destruction have no place. --Mohamed ElBaradei https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Mohamed_ElBaradei