A renowned Nepali Sherpa guide has successfully climbed Mount Everest for a record 32nd time, an official said on Sunday, surpassing his own previous milestone set last year.
Kami Rita Sherpa, 56, reached the 8,849-metre (29,032-foot) summit while guiding clients from the 14 Peaks Expedition company.
Nepal’s Department of Tourism congratulated him on achieving what it described as a “historic milestone” and praised his long-standing contribution to promoting mountain tourism in the country.
He reached the summit at 10:12 a.m. local time on Sunday, according to officials, while another Sherpa climber, Lhakpa Sherpa, reportedly completed her 11th ascent, the highest by a woman.
Kami Rita Sherpa was born in Thame village in the Solukhumbu district, the same region as legendary mountaineer Tenzing Norgay, who, along with Sir Edmund Hillary, first reached the Everest summit in 1953.
He first climbed Everest in 1994 and has repeated the feat almost every year since, except when expeditions were halted in 2014, 2015, and 2020, often completing multiple ascents in a single year.
Over 8,000 climbers have reached the world’s highest peak since its first successful ascent, with Sherpa guides playing a vital role in supporting foreign expeditions and sustaining local livelihoods in the Himalayan region.
