THREE AND HALF DAYS AFTER BEGINNINGS AN UNPRECEDENTED CLIMB, SEVEN BLIND AFRICANS ON THURSDAY (FEBRUARY 20) TRIUMPHED OVER NATURAL HAZARDS AND THEIR HANDICAP AND REACHES THE SUMMIT CRATER OF MOUNT KILIMANJARO, AFRICA'S HIGHEST PEAK.

THE FINAL STAGES OF THE CLIMB, UP THE 3,000 FOOT (915 METRES) DOME OF KIBO -- KILIMANJARO'S EXTINCT VOLCANO -- WAS TOUGH GOING ALL THE WAY. FOR FOUR HOURS THE THREE UGANDANS, TWO KENYANS AND TWO TANZANIANS HAD TO KICK FOOTHOLDS IN SNOW SO DEEP THAT IT NEARLY HALTED THEM IN THE FINAL 50 YARDS (METRES).

BY THE TIME THEY REACHED GILLMAN'S POINT, AT 18,635 FEET (5,680 METRES) GENERALLY REGARDED AS THE "TOP" OF THE MOUNTAIN ??? CLIMBERS WERE TOO EXHAUSTED AND THE UNFILTERED SUN WAS TOO HOT FOR AN ATTEMPT ON KILIMANJARO'S TRUE SUMMIT -- THE 19,340 FEET (5,895 METRES) UHURU (FREEDOM) PEAK.

THE OBJECT OF THE CLIMB WAS TO SHOW HOW MUCH THE TRAINING OF THE BLIND HAS ADVANCED IN EAST AFRICA AND TO HELP CHANGE THE ATTITUDE OF SIGHTED PEOPLE TOWARDS THE POTENTIAL AND ABILITY OF THE BLIND. THE GBP700 STERLING COSTS OF THE KILIMANJARO EXPEDITION WERE RAISED BY BRITAIN'S ROYAL COMMONWEALTH SOCIETY FOR THE BLIND. WHICH IS NOW HEADED BY LORD HUNT, LEADER OF THE FIRST TEAM TO CONQUEST EVEREST.

THE UGANDANS IN THE PARTY WERE JOHN OPIYO, TOFIRI KIBUKA AND LAURENCE SERWAMBALA -- THE KENYANS, MOSES MUTIE AND LUBMASEN ARDEBRETI AND THE TANZANIANS NOEL PALOUR AND MATHIAS GAILANGA. ANOTHER TANZANIA, 26-YEAR-OLD JOHN KISAKA, WAS LEFT AT THE HUT BELOW THE KIBO SCREE??? SUFFERING FROM MOUNTAIN SICKNESS.

ACCOMPANYING THE BLIND CLIMBERS WERE MR JOHN DUBEGA, CHIEF INSTRUCTOR AT THE LOITOKITOK OUTWARD BOUND MOUNTAIN SCHOOL, AND MR. GEOFFREY SALISBURY, AN ADVISOR FROM THE ROYAL COMMONWEALTH SOCIETY FOR THE BLIND.