KATHMANDU: Veteran climbing guide Kami Rita Sherpa has reached the summit of Mount Everest for a record 31st time, further extending his own world record, German Press Agency (dpa) reported.
The 55-year-old was leading a group from the Indian Army and reached the summit in the early hours of Tuesday, according to Mingma Sherpa, chairman of expedition organiser Seven Summit Treks.
Kami Rita first summited the 8,848.86-metre peak in 1994 and has climbed it nearly every year since, according to Guinness World Records.
A former porter-turned-guide, Kami Rita has also climbed several other Himalayan peaks over 8,000 metres.
His closest rival, Pasang Dawa Sherpa, reached the summit twice this season, bringing his total to 29 ascents, according to expedition company Climbing the Seven Summits.
Earlier this month, British mountaineer Kenton Cool reached the summit of Mount Everest for the 19th time, breaking his own record for the most ascents by a climber not belonging to the ethnic Sherpa community.
Sherpas are an ethnic group from the region whose members often work as guides and porters for mountaineers from abroad.
Everest can be climbed from both Nepal and Chinese-administered Tibet, though most climbers take the southern route from Nepal, where permits cost about US$11,000. According to the Nepalese tourism authority, 468 mountaineers received this permit in the spring season.
