Pakistani Mountaineer Sirbaz Khan has become the first Pakistani to climb 10 of the world’s 14 tallest peaks after scaling the 8,586-metre-high Kanchenjunga mountain in Nepal on Saturday
Sirbaz was part of a team of climbers led by Nepalese mountaineer Mingma Gyalje Sherpa, according to the Alpine Club of Pakistan. The team summited the Kangchenjunga at 7 am on Saturday. Sirbaz raised the Pakistan flag at the peak upon completion of his ascent, according to the secretary of the Alpine Club, Karar Haidar.
In his latest communication from Kanchenjunga earlier today, Sirbaz Khan thanked the entire Pakistan nation for supporting him and requested to pray for his safe return.
As Sirbaz achieved the feat, congratulations poured in for him.
Sajid Ali Sadpara, the son of late legendary mountaineer Mohammad Ali Sadpara and a climber himself, tweeted: “Congratulations kako Sirbaz khan for conquering the world’s 3rd highest mountain Kanchenjunga.”
The organizer of the expedition, Saad Munawar called it a moment of pride for the country.
“From the time when Pakistani mountaineers were denied the chance to summit their own mountains [mountains within Pakistan] to the time when Pakistani mountaineers are leading on foreign soil, we have come a long way,” he told Dawn.
“But our journey is far from over yet. In fact, we have only just started. We will keep working to develop and promote the sport of mountaineering in Pakistan and in the years to come, we’ll have Pakistani mountaineers summiting peaks all across the globe,” Munawar vowed.
Who is Sirbaz Khan?
Hailing from the Aliabad area of Hunza in Gilgit-Baltistan, Sirbaz Khan started his climbing career in 2016. Earlier this year, he summited the 8,091-metre-high Annapurna mountain in Nepal.
In 2019, he scaled world’s fourth-highest mountain Mount Lhotse (8,516m) in Nepal without using supplementary oxygen – the first-ever Pakistani to do so.
Other peaks summited by Sirbaz Khan include:
- The 8,125-meter-high Nanga Parbat (2017)
- The 8,611-meter-high K-2 (2018)
- The 8,163-meter-high Broad Peak (2019)
- The 8,848-meter-high Everest
- The 8,035-meter-high Gasherbrum II
Late Muhammad Ali Sadpara had accompanied Sirbaz on four of these expeditions. He is aiming to become the first Pakistani to climb all 14 of the world’s highest peaks.