1.   Among those not at the start was Marco Pantani, the fine Italian climber whose team was not invited.

2.   An unsuspected feud between Lance Armstrong and Marco Pantani burst into public view Monday as the American leader of the Tour de France angrily criticized the Italian star climber.

3.   Last month, Italian climber Pietro Dal Pra, a strong all-round athlete who guides in the Dolomites, made a stop during a cross-country climbing road trip.

4.   Richard Virenque, the French climber with Festina, and Claudio Chiappucci, the Italian climber with Carrera, lost the same amount of time.

5.   They accompanied Royal Air Force pilots on bombing missions, penetrated the jungles of Vietnam and helped an Italian climber reach the top of the Matterhorn.

6.   A rescue helicopter sighted three other bodies, believed to be those of three missing Italian climbers, while it picked up two other men.

7.   According to PAP the two Italian climbers accompanying Wielicki also reached the peak.

8.   Three Italian climbers were also injured on Mont Blanc and two Austrians on the Matterhorn.

9.   The famous Italian climber was first to climb Mount Everest solo and the first to climb it without oxygen supplies.