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

Cheering crowds hailed an 18-year-old Nepali mountaineer as a hero as he returned home Monday after breaking the record for the youngest person to summit all 14 of the world's 8,000-metre peaks.

Nima Rinji Sherpa reached the summit of Tibet's 8,027-metre-high (26,335 feet) Shisha Pangma on October 9, completing his mission to stand on the world's highest peaks.

On Monday, he returned from China to Nepal's capital Kathmandu, where scores waited 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.

Nepali mountaineer Nima Rinji Sherpa (C) is greeted by his family members upon his arrival at the airport in Kathmandu on October 14, 2024. An 18-year-old Nepali mountaineer on October 9, 2024 broke the record for the youngest person to summit all 14 of the world's 8,000-metre peaks, his team said.AFP

Sherpa hugged his family while others rushed to offer him scarves and flowers. He later waved to the crowd out of a car sunroof, while proudly holding the national flag.

Nepal's climbing community also welcomed several others who returned after completing the summit of 14 peaks.

Summiting all 14 "eight-thousanders" is considered the peak of mountaineering aspirations, with all the peaks located in the Himalayan and Karakoram ranges, straddling Nepal, Pakistan, Tibet and India.

Climbers cross "death zones" where there is not enough oxygen in the air to sustain human life for long periods.

Italian climber Reinhold Messner first completed the feat in 1986, and only around 50 others have successfully followed in his footsteps.

Many elite climbers have died in the pursuit.

'Trailblazers'

All of the mountains are in the Himalayas and neighbouring Karakoram range, which spans Nepal, China, India and Pakistan.

In the last few years, mountaineers are expected to reach the "true summit" of every mountain, which many climbers of the previous generation had missed.

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

Raised in bustling Kathmandu, Sherpa initially preferred to play football or shoot videos.

Nepali mountaineer Nima Rinji Sherpa poses upon his arrival at the airport in Kathmandu on October 14, 2024. An 18-year-old Nepali mountaineer on October 9, 2024 broke the record for the youngest person to summit all 14 of the world's 8,000-metre peaks, his team said.AFP

But two years ago, he put his camera down to pursue mountaineering. Sherpa, who already holds multiple records from his ascents of dozens of peaks, started high-altitude climbing at the age of 16, by climbing Mount Manaslu in August 2022.

Nepali climbers -- usually ethnic Sherpas from the valleys around Everest -- are considered the backbone of the climbing industry in the Himalayas.

They carry the majority of equipment and food, fixing ropes and repairing ladders.

Long in the shadows as supporters of foreign climbers, they are slowly being recognised in their own right.

"I want to show the younger generation of Sherpas that they can rise above the stereotype of being only support climbers and embrace their potential as top-tier athletes, adventurers, and creators," he said in a statement soon after his final summit.

"We are not just guides. We are trailblazers."

In recent years, climbers like Sherpa have set record after record, and are hopeful their feats will inspire the next generation of Nepali mountaineers.

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