Hi, I Just Climbed Everest Twice in One Week!

Kami Rita Sherpa, 49, breaks own world record, ascends mountain for 24th time
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted May 21, 2019 7:47 AM CDT
Sherpa Just Climbed Everest for 24th Time. His 23rd Was a Week Ago
In this May 20, 2018, file photo, Nepalese veteran Sherpa guide, Kami Rita waves as he arrives in Kathmandu, Nepal.   (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha, File)

Dear everyone who's ever climbed Mount Everest: Big deal. That may be exactly what Kami Rita Sherpa is thinking after extending his latest record on the mega-mountain, reaching the peak for the 24th time on Tuesday, per the BBC. Not only that, but the 49-year-old had just ascended Everest for the 23rd time on May 15—less than a week ago. A Nepal Department of Tourism rep confirmed Tuesday's climb to NBC News. Rita, who started climbing in 1994, somewhat shrugs off his place in the record books. "I actually never knew that you could make a record," he told the BBC before his 23rd summit. "Had I known, I would have made a lot more summits earlier."

Three other climbers are on Rita's heels, with 21 ascents each, but two of them have already retired from mountaineering. Rita says he has no plans to retire anytime soon—"I can keep going until I am 60 years old; with oxygen it's no big deal"—though NBC and Reuters note his goal is 25 Everest ascents before he hangs up his crampons. Mountain climbing runs in the family for Rita: His father was one of the first Sherpas to start helping people conquer Everest. (More Mount Everest stories.)

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