Climbing as a sport began in 18th-century Europe, with attention focused primarily on Mont Blanc, which was first successfully scaled in 1786. For about a century thereafter (often referred to as the golden age of climbing) climbers-predominantly English-attempted other Alpine summits, guided by local farmers and hunters. By the end of the 19th century mountain-climbing clubs had been organized throughout Europe and North America, and most climbing was being done without guides.
In the 20th century climbers turned their attention to the world's highest ranges, the Himalayas and the Karakorum. Mount Everest was finally conquered in 1953 by the New Zealander Edmund Hillary and the Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, from India. The second highest peak in the world, K2 (formerly known as Mount Godwin Austen), was climbed in 1954. Such once remote and unknown ranges now attract numerous expeditions every year, with climbers coming from all over the world as the sport grows in popularity. The highest mountains outside Asia lie in South America; many have yet to be climbed.