Independent 10,224 by Phi

This is Phi’s second appearance this week – whatever happened to Phi-day?

We rattled through this puzzle fairly quickly, and then started to look for a theme.
There are a number of connected entries – 5ac and 27ac and the Europeans at 16ac and 23ac, but it rapidly became apparent that the intended theme relates to 5d / 20d, the first man to conquer 3d (with Tenzing Norgay – who doesn’t get a mention).
Some electronic research revealed that today is the 100th Anniversary of his birth and that, after he climbed Everest in 1953, he took part in an expedition to the South Pole in 1958, and in 1985 he flew with Neil Armstrong to the North Pole. These three exploits have since become known as the 2d / 23ac / 15d. There is a reference to the Everest feat in the clue to 13ac
While compiling the blog, we realised that the grid is unusual – with (not-quite) mirror symmetry for a change.

Across

1 Goddess identified in repeated articles? (6)
ATHENA
A THEN A (‘repeated articles’)

5 Festival lately vacated? That’s a 22 (8)
EASTERLY
EASTER (festival) LatelY without the middle letters or ‘vacated’ – a sort of wind or ‘blow’ (22 across)

9 Authentic ceasefire abandoned by Cuba (4)
TRUE
TRUcE (ceasefire) without or ‘abandoning’ the ‘c’ (Cuba)

10 Recalled one piano was satisfying in musical measures (5)
TEMPI
I (one) P (piano) MET (was satisfying) all reversed or ‘recalled’

11 Determination I should replace article in bequest (4)
GRIT
GRanT (bequest) with ‘an’ (article) replaced by I

12 Look at me before following Henry (4)
HERE
ERE (before) following H (Henry)

13 Organised sources of grand escapade in the Himalayas? (5)
RANGE
RAN (organised) + G E (first letters or ‘sources’ of ‘grand escapade’)

14 Growers regularly overlooked leaves (4)
GOES
Alternate or ‘regular’ letters of GrOwErS

15 Scam involving excessive material (6)
COTTON
CON (scam) round or ‘involving’ OTT (excessive)

16 Europeans of small stature welcoming daughter on board (6)
SWEDES
WEE (small) round or ‘welcoming’ D (daughter) in or ‘on board’ SS (steamship)

18 Crazy animals going like the clappers? (4-2-3-6)
BATS-IN-THE-BELFRY
A play on the fact that bells (found in a BELFRY) have clappers – not our favourite clue

22 Punch head of boxer, then well down the chest? (4)
BLOW
B (first letter or ‘head’ of ‘boxer’) LOW (‘well down the chest’)

23 Europeans identified with snowier regions (5)
POLES
The North and South POLES are ‘snowier regions’

25 Bird heads for Kingston in West Indies (4)
KIWI
First letters or ‘heads’ of Kingston In West Indies

26 No Canadian unity after rearranging church festival (12,3)
ANNUNCIATION DAY
An anagram of NO CANADIAN UNITY – anagrind is ‘rearranging’

27 The Queen harshly ignoring note? That’s a 22 (8)
WESTERLY
WE (the Queen – ‘the royal we’) STERnLY (harshly) without or ‘ignoring’ ‘n’ (note) – another wind or ‘blow’ (22 across)

28 Pool power, heading off confusion (6)
PUDDLE
P (power) mUDDLE (confusion) without the first letter or ‘heading off’

Down

2 Husband aboard plane, say, in row near the front (5)
THREE
H (husband) in or ‘aboard’ TREE (‘plane, say’). We’re not sure about the definition here, as rows of seats in a theatre are usually given letters rather than numbers

3 The others will be led by female Surveyor-General of renown (7)
EVEREST
REST (the others) after or ‘led by’ EVE (female) – we hadn’t realised that Everest was named after Col Sir George Everest, who was Surveyor General of India from 1830 to 1843 – you learn something every day!

4 Less sensible ditching leader – no feasible PM? (9)
AFTERNOON
dAFTER (less sensible) without the first letter or ‘ditching leader’ NO ON (feasible)

5 English and old German money and German and old English King (6)
EDMUND
E (English) DM (deutschmark – ‘old German money’) UND (German for ‘and’)

6 Evidence of neglect we start to brush after a rest (6,3)
SPIDER WEB
WE B (first letter or ‘start’ to ‘brush’) after SPIDER (a rest – in snooker and billiards)

7 Rear of vehicle: no good getting on – it’s occupied (7)
ENGAGED
E (last letter or ‘rear’ of ‘vehicle’) NG (no good) AGED (‘getting on’)

8 Learning about one French river (5)
LOIRE
LORE (learning) round I (one)

15 Middle of alley in new development is a difficult issue (9)
CHALLENGE
aLLEy (middle letters) in CHANGE (new development)

17 Let’s not bother with dance that’s deranged (9)
SCREWBALL
SCREW (‘let’s not bother with’) BALL (dance)

19 Noticed most of study re-evaluated remnants of box? (7)
SAWDUST
SAW (noticed) + an anagram of STUDy without the last letter or ‘most of’ – anagrind is ‘re-evaluated’

20 Ascent on American lines shown by Clinton, say (7)
HILLARY
HILL (ascent) A (American) RY (railway – ‘lines’)

21 Compared range of knowledge – wasn’t reliable about that (7)
LIKENED
KEN (range of knowledge) in LIED (wasn’t reliable)

23 Worried person who’d be uplifted by reminder of situation (5)
PACER
RECAP (‘reminder of situation’) reversed or ‘uplifted’

24 Pinch money found in dumpster (5)
SKIMP
M (money) in SKIP (dumpster)