Nepalese mountaineer reaches the summit of Everest for the 27th time and breaks his own record

Kami Rita Sherpa, 53, reached the summit of Mount Everest for the 27th time on Wednesday, May 17. AFP - PRAKASH MATHEMA

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Nepalese mountaineer Kami Rita Sherpa reached the summit of Mount Everest for the 27th time on Wednesday, breaking his own record for the most ascents of the world's highest mountain, the organizer of his expedition announced.

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Kami Rita Sherpa reached the summit of Everest (8,849 meters) guiding a Vietnamese billionaire. The 53-year-old Nepalese mountaineer held the record for the number of ascents of Everest since 2018 which he climbed for the 22nd time, breaking his own record he shared with two other Sherpas who have since retired. The following year, he reached the roof of the world twice in the space of six days. On Sunday, his record of 26 ascents was equalled by Nepalese mountaineer Pasang Dawa Sherpa, 46. Three days later, Kami Rita Sherpa finally regained her title.

Nicknamed "the man of Everest", Kami Rita Sherpa was born in 1970 in Thame, a village in the Himalayas, a breeding ground for experienced mountaineers. He grew up in the Himalayan valley watching his father, then his brother, go on expeditions as mountain guides, before walking in their footsteps. A mountain guide for more than 20 years, he first successfully climbed Everest in 1994, working for a commercial expedition. Since then, he has climbed Everest almost every year, leading the first rope team to open the way to the summit several times.

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Some people are chasing records, but I don't do this for records," Kami Rita Sherpa told AFP in March. "I am thinking about what we can do for tourism in Nepal, so that more mountaineers come here and how we can satisfy them and make them happy," he said.

An industry that relies entirely on the experience of Sherpas

Nepalese authorities have already issued 478 climbing permits to foreign climbers this year, bringing in $11,000 (nearly €10,000) each. It takes a budget of 45,000 to 200,000 dollars (41,000 to 184,000 euros) in total per ascent. With most climbers accompanied by a guide, more than 900 people will attempt to reach the roof of the world this season, which lasts until early June, a record for this year.

The mountaineering industry in the Himalayas relies on the experience of Sherpas, usually from the valleys of Everest. They pay a heavy price to accompany hundreds of adventurers every year on the "roof of the world". A third of the dead in Everest are Nepalese climbers.

The mountaineering season began tragically this year on Everest with the disappearance of three Nepalese climbers in April and an American in early May. And earlier on Wednesday, a 46-year-old Moldovan mountaineer died on the mountain. Nepal is home to eight of the world's ten highest peaks, including Mount Everest, and hosts hundreds of climbers each season, when temperatures are milder and winds generally weaker.

On Wednesday, British mountain guide Kenton Cool, 49, reached the summit of Everest for the 17th time, breaking his own record for the most peaks reached by a non-Nepalese.

► Read also: Everest: high risk of pollution in the face of the record number of climbing permits

(

With AFP)

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