Nepal: A man breaks his own record by scaling Everest 26 times

According to a government official, a Nepali sherpa scaled Mount Everest for the 26th time, breaking his own prior record set last year.

On Saturday, Kami Rita Sherpa, 52, led a group of 10 Sherpa climbers up the 8,848.86-meter summit via the usual southeast ridge route.

“Kami Rita has broken his own record and established a new world record in climbing,” said Taranath Adhikari, director general of the Department of Tourism.

Kami Rita’s wife expressed her delight at her husband’s success.

In 1953, New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary and Nepalese sherpa Tenzing Norgay pioneered the climbing route utilized by Kami Rita.

Nepal has given 316 permits, down from 408 last year, the largest number ever, during the peak season.

In 2019, the Himalayan nation, which relies heavily on climbers for foreign cash, was chastised for allowing overcrowding and many climber deaths on the peaks.

According to the Himalayan database, Everest is climbed 10,657 times from Nepali and Tibetan sides since 1953.

It has even caused 311 people dying since then.