Nepali teenager hailed as hero after climbing world’s 8,000 m peaks

An 18-year-old mountain climber from Nepal was greeted with applause by onlookers as he returned home on Monday, having broken the record for the youngest person to summit all 14 of the world’s 8,000-meter peaks.

On October 9, Nima Rinji Sherpa achieved his goal of standing atop the highest peaks in the world when he reached the top of Tibet’s 8,027-meter (26,335-foot) Shisha Pangma.

He arrived back in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, on Monday from China, to find a large crowd waiting to see him.

“I am feeling very happy,” he told AFP, draped in traditional Buddhist scarves and garlands of marigold flowers, as he emerged to loud cheers at the airport.

“Thank you so much everyone”, he said to his supporters, beaming a wide grin.

As others hurried to give him flowers and scarves, Sherpa hugged his family. Later, he proudly held the American flag and waved to the throng from the sunroof of his automobile.

The climbing community in Nepal also welcomed back a number of those who had successfully climbed all 14 peaks.

Reaching the summit of all 14 “eight-thousanders” is regarded as the pinnacle of climbing goals; these peaks are spread over Tibet, India, Pakistan, Nepal, and the Karakoram ranges.

Climbers travel through “death zones”—areas where there isn’t enough oxygen in the atmosphere to support life as we know it.

Sherpa is no stranger to the mountains, hailing from a family of record-holding mountaineers, who also now run Nepal’s largest mountaineering expedition company.

The record was previously held by another Nepali climber, Mingma Gyabu ‘David’ Sherpa. He achieved it in 2019, at the age of 30.

Nima Rinji Sherpa began high-altitude climbing at the age of sixteen in August 2022, when he ascended Mount Manaslu. He currently holds various records from his ascents of numerous summits.

Nepali climbers, who are primarily ethnic Sherpas from the Everest valleys, are regarded as the mainstay of the Himalayan climbing scene.

They carry most of the food and supplies, mending ladders and ropes.
They have been in the background for a while, helping out foreign climbers, but they are gradually coming into their own.