"Why limit myself?" Polish climber aims to defy critics with K2 bid

Polish climber Magdalena Gorzkowska attempts to climb the K2 mountain in winter, in Pakistan in this undated photo. #GorzkowskaInPostK2Winter/Handout via REUTERS

WARSAW (Reuters) - Scaling the world's second-highest peak, K2, in winter is one of the last great feats in mountaineering -- and despite what some see as a lack of experience, 28-year-old Pole Magdalena Gorzkowska wants to be the first to do it.

If Gorzkowska, a medal-winning runner who also became the youngest Polish woman ever to climb Mount Everest, makes it to the summit, she will have made history and silenced those who see her attempt as a social media stunt with no chance of success.