German biathlon champion Laura Dahlmeier has died on a mountain in northern Pakistan after a climbing accident, according to a local government spokesperson. Dahlmeier, a two-time Winter Olympic gold medallist, was ascending Laila Peak in the Karakoram mountain range on Monday when she was struck by falling rocks. She had been climbing with a partner who survived. Rescuers were able to confirm the 31-year-old's death but not retrieve the body because of unfavourable weather, said Faizullah Faraq, a spokesperson for the regional Gilgit-Baltistan government. Any final decision on retrieving the body would follow the wishes of Dahlmeier's family, he said. A statement on Dahlmeier's Instagram page said it had been her wish that nobody risk their life to recover her body after an accident. German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier offered his condolences to Dahlmeier's parents, writing that she "was an exceptional sportswoman". He recalled that he presented her with the highest honour in German sport, the Silver Laurel Leaf, shortly after the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, where she became the first woman to win the 7.5 kilometre sprint and 10km pursuit biathlon gold medals at one Games. "Laura Dahlmeier was an ambassador for our country in the world, a role model for peaceful, cheerful and fair coexistence across borders," he said. Dahlmeier's death came two weeks after Norwegian Olympic ski cross bronze medallist Audun Grønvold died after being struck by lightning. Authorities launched a rescue mission after receiving a distress signal from Dahlmeier's climbing partner, Marina Eva, who managed to descend to base camp with help from rescuers on Tuesday. Dahlmeier's partner had tried for several hours to rescue her, but that was not possible because of the difficult terrain and persistent rockfall, the statement on Dahlmeier's Instagram page said. "Her partner, who could no longer hear any signs of life, eventually decided to leave the danger zone and resume her descent," according to the statement. It was Dahlmeier's express wish "that in a case like this, no-one should risk their life to recover her," the statement said. It said Dahlmeier's family thanked the rescue team and climbers, who did their best to make her rescue possible. Bodies of foreign climbers who die attempting to summit mountains in Pakistan are typically recovered at the request of their families, but if the family declines a rescue, the remains are left at the spot where the climber died. Dahlmeier was injured at an altitude of about 5,700 metres at about noon on Monday, according to her management team in Germany. Military helicopters were on stand-by to assist in any rescue but were unable to deploy because of bad weather, Mr Faraq said. Dahlmeier won seven gold, three silver and five bronze medals at Biathlon World Championships, along with 20 World Cup races and the overall World Cup in the 2016-17 season, according to her website. She won gold medals in the sprint and pursuit races at the Pyeongchang Olympics in 2018 and the bronze medal in the individual competition. Dahlmeier ended her biathlon career in 2019, when she was 25. She grew up in the German Alps and turned to mountaineering challenges after ending her biathlon career. She had been a state-certified mountain and ski guide since 2023 and volunteered for the Garmisch-Partenkirchen mountain rescue team.