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PESHAWAR: German double Olympic biathlon champion Laura Dahlmeier has died after a mountaineering accident in Pakistan, her management and local authorities confirmed on Wednesday.

The accident occurred around noon on Monday, at an altitude of approximately 5,700 meters at Laila Peak, the Alpine Club of Pakistan said on Tuesday.

Dahlmeier was climbing with her mountaineering partner when she was struck by a sudden rockfall in the Hushe Valley, part of the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region. Poor weather conditions prevented a rescue helicopter from reaching the site.

Two teams of expert climbers from Germany and the United States deployed to search her confirmed that she had died, regional government spokesperson Faizullah Faraq said.

“Laura Dahlmeier died on 28 July in a mountain accident on Laila Peak (6,069 meters) in Pakistan’s Karakoram range,” her management said in a statement.

“A recovery operation was launched but ultimately called off on the evening of 29 July.”

Her representatives added that Dahlmeier most likely died instantly, while her mountaineering partner was unharmed.

“It was Laura Dahlmeier’s express and written will that in a case like this, no one should risk their life to recover her,” they said.

“It was her wish to leave her body behind on the mountain in this case. This is also in line with the wishes of her relatives.”

Faraq said the regional authorities would respect any decision by her family.

The provincial government spokesperson also identified the climbing partner as Marina Eva Krauss.

Krauss successfully descended to base camp and is reported to be in good health, he added.

The 31-year-old Dahlmeier retired from biathlon in 2019, aged 25, a year after becoming the first female biathlete to achieve a sprint and pursuit double at the same Olympics.

OLYMPIC TRIBUTE

“Laura made history at the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics as the first female biathlete to win sprint and pursuit gold at the same Games edition. She will be remembered forever,” the President of the International Olympic Committee Kirsty Coventry said.

The German Olympic Sports Confederation expressed deep sorrow at the news.

“She was more than an Olympic champion — she was someone with heart, attitude and vision,” it said in a statement on X.

Dahlmeier, who was born in the Bavarian ski town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, was also honored by the premier of her home state, Markus Soeder, who said “she was ambitious and successful, yet always remained humble and close to her homeland.”

The International Biathlon Union also expressed its condolences.

“Laura’s energy and passion for life touched so many around the world. Her legacy, both within biathlon and beyond, will never be forgotten and will continue to inspire countless athletes and adventurers for generations to come,” it said.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s foreign office on Wednesday rejected Indian Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement claiming New Delhi had killed all three militants involved in the Pahalgam attack, whom he said were allegedly Pakistani nationals, as ” replete with fabrications.”

Shah told parliamentarians during a debate on Tuesday that three militants involved in the April 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam town had been killed in a joint operation by the military, paramilitary and police on the outskirts of Srinagar. Shah had also said that all three alleged attackers were Pakistani nationals.

Gunmen opened fire on tourists in Pahalgam on April 22, killing 26 in total. India blamed Islamabad for supporting the attack, which Pakistan denied. The attack started a four-day conflict between India and Pakistan in which over 70 people were killed on both sides of the border.

“The account given by the Indian Home Minister is replete with fabrications, leading to serious questions about its credibility,” the Pakistani foreign office said.

“Is it a mere coincidence that the alleged perpetrators of the Pahalgam Attack were killed at the start of the Lok Sabha debate?“

The foreign office said India did not avail Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s offer of a transparent inquiry into the Pahalgam attack, saying that it instead chose “the path of belligerence and aggression.”

The foreign office also rejected Delhi’s assertion that it had established a “new normal” in bilateral relations with Pakistan by carrying out strikes against alleged “terrorist” camps in the country in May.

“As we have already shown through our resolute actions in May 2025, we shall forcefully counter any future aggression,” the statement said.

“For us, the only ‘normal’ in bilateral relations is respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, and adherence to the principles and purposes of the UN Charter.”

The foreign office concluded by saying that Pakistan remains a responsible state committed to peace and regional stability.

He said Islamabad wanted to pursue a “meaningful dialogue” for the resolution of all outstanding issues between the two nations, including that of the disputed Kashmir territory.

India and Pakistan, both nuclear-armed neighbors, have gone to war thrice since 1947 after gaining independence from British colonial rule. Two out of these wars have been over the territory of Kashmir.

Both claim the territory in full but administer only parts of it. India accuses Pakistan of arming and funding Kashmir militants, which Islamabad denies and says New Delhi fuels militancy in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) provinces.