Description
Named for the tallest peak in the European Union , the Mont Blanc massif consists of eleven summits straddling the tripoint of France, Italy and Switzerland. The first recorded ascent of Mont Blanc itself was in 1786, by a team based here in the Chamonix region of France—a feat that pioneered mountaineering as a popular sport. More than a century later, in 1924, Chamonix made another mark on history as host of the first-ever Winter Olympics , a snowy success that gave winter sports a big boost on the global stage.