A civilian expedition composed of six Chinese mountaineers arrived in Hong Kong on Thursday morning, formally completing their mission of clearing seven summits in seven continents and reaching both the South and North Poles ("Seven Plus Two Mission").

The group reached the South Pole on December 28, which enabled two members, Wang Sachs and Chung Kin Man, to complete their "Seven Plus Two Mission". The 52-year-old Chung also became the first Hong Kong native that has fulfilled the mission.

"The expedition (to the South Pole) was smooth and we had very good cooperation with each other," Wang told a small group of media at the airport terminal.

The expedition landed on the Antarctic continent on December 18 and reached the South Pole 10 days later. Only light injuries of frostbite were reported in the mission.

Wang and Chung have added two more Chinese names to the list of people that accomplished the "Seven Plus Two Mission".

Chinese mountaineers Wang Yongfeng, Ci Luo and Liu Jian on Dec.16 reached the South Pole and completed the "Seven Plus Two Mission." Before the trio, only five people had achieved the mission.

(Xinhua News Agency January 5, 2006)