Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty Images
Kami Rita Sherpa pictured at Everest Base Camp in 2021.
CNN
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A Nepali Sherpa has climbed Mount Everest for the 27th time, breaking the world record for the total number of summits of the world’s highest and one of its deadliest mountains.
Kami Rita Sherpa, 53, completed her latest ascent on May 17, Nepal tourism official Bhikyan Koirala told CNN.
Gami – most Sherpas go by their first names – is a senior guide at Seven Summits Treks, a Kathmandu travel company. He started his career in trekking in 1992.
“We are very happy to learn that at 8:30 this morning, Kami Rita has successfully summited Mount Everest together with a foreign climber,” said Seven Summits leader Mingwa Sherpa.
He added: “Commie Rita is coming down now. He is healthy and in good condition,” he said.
Kami is already a record holder, having set the world record for the 26th ascent of Mount Everest last year.
Just this week, a 46-year-old fellow Nepali Install Dava Sherpa, tied Kami’s record for the 26th ascent. Their tie lasted two days before Kami again summitted.
May is the peak season for climbing Everest, known as Sagarmatha in Nepali.
The country issued permits for registration 463 foreign climbers In the 2023 Everest season, the highest number ever has raised concerns that the long queues to reach the peak seen in previous years could be repeated. Waiting for the summit has previously been blamed for casualties on the mountain.
Nepal has 8 of the world’s 10 highest peaks, including Everest, making mountaineering a significant source of income for the country.
