The frozen body of a young climber who disappeared 32 years ago in the French Alps has been discovered by mountain climbers, French media reports say.

Patrice Hyvert was last seen alive on March 1, 1982, when he took a solitary climb in the Mont Blanc mountain range on the French-Italian border.

The 23-year-old did not return after the weather took a bad turn.

Patrice Hyvert was last seen alive on March 1, 1982, when he took a solitary climb in the Mont Blanc mountain range on the French-Italian border

Rescue officials say the mountaineer’s frozen body was found with his ID and all of his ski equipment still on him.

His body was found by two climbers on July 3 on the Talefre glacier at an altitude of 2,687 metres, local newspaper Dauphine Libere reported.

Patrice Hyvert’s father, Gerard, told RTL radio that he had given up hope of finding his son’s body.

“I’m a mountain man, and I would have preferred him to stay up there…He was better on a mountain than in a coffin. He was in his element,” he said.