Jean Ravier

Jean Ravier and his twin brother Pierre Ravier, born in Paris on October 20, 1933 to Olympe and Albert Ravier, are French climbers and Pyrenees climbers. They have an older sister and will be followed by four other sisters and two brothers. In 1936, the family moved to Bordeaux where Albert took over a business selling spare parts for automobiles during the Somme. In 1940, mobilized, he was taken prisoner and remained so for a year. Olympe and her children retreated to Tuzaguet, in the Hautes-Pyrénées. Turbulent and quarrelsome, the twins climbed trees and explored the many caves in the region. With their aunt Line, the "free electron" of the family, they listened to Radio London. After the Allied landings of June 6, 1944, they made a huge Lorraine cross out of fabric and unfurled it from the top of a large magnolia. In 1946, they discovered the mountain during a family excursion to Néouvielle. In 1950, they made their first climbs alone. After climbing the north face of the Petit Pi...