Famous Nepalese Sherpa guide sets world record, scales Mt Everest for 27th time

KATHMANDU: World-renowned Nepalese mountaineer Kami Rita Sherpa scaled Mt Everest for a record 27th time on Wednesday, beating his own record with the highest number of ascends on the world's highest peak.

The 53-year-old record-holding mountain guide stood atop the 8,848.86 metres-high peak at 8:30 am on Wednesday, the Department of Tourism of Nepal said.

He regained his title for the most climbs of Mount Everest, just three days after a fellow Sherpa guide equalled his previous record.

Pasang Dawa Sherpa, 46, a fellow Sherpa guide, scaled the summit of Mount Everest on Sunday for the 26th time, equalling Kami Rita's previous record for the most ascents of the world's highest peak.

A resident of Solukhumbu district in eastern Nepal, Kami Rita first reached Everest on May 13, 1994.

Kami Rita, who works as a senior mountain guide at the Seven Summit Treks, reached the summit under an expedition organised by the Kathmandu-based commercial adventure operator.

He summited Mt Everest for the 26th time in 2022 and has climbed many mountains over 8,000 metres in Nepal and abroad. Kami Rita has also conquered several famous mountain peaks, including Mt K2, Mt Cho Oyu, Mt Lhotse and Mt Manaslu.

Meanwhile, an Indian national on Wednesday scaled the world's seventh-highest mountain Mt. Dhaulagiri in Nepal.

In an expedition organised by the Seven Summit Trek, seven mountaineers, including Jitendra Ramdas Gaware from India, successfully ascended the 8,167-metre high peak.

Others who scaled the peak were Chhepal Sherpa, Jangbu Sherpa and Angeli Sherpa from Nepal, Shehroze Kashif from Pakistan, Vibek Andrea Sefland from Norway and Thomas Ntavarinos from Greece, according to the staff at the organising Seven Summit Trek.

Mt. Dhaulagiri is the seventh-highest mountain in the world.

Meanwhile, a Moldovan climber died at Camp IV on Mt Everest on Wednesday, The Himalayan Times newspaper said.

Victor Brinza, a part of the expedition run by Himalayan Traverse Adventure, breathed his last after he fell ill at South Col, base camp officials said.

With this, the death toll on Everest this season has reached six. Earlier, four Sherpa climbers and an American doctor died on Everest.