British climber Kenton Cool summits Mount Everest for 19th time

KATHMANDU - British mountaineer Kenton Cool on Sunday reached the summit of Mount Everest for the 19th time, breaking his record for the most ascents by a climber not belonging to the ethnic Sherpa community, German Press Agency (dpa) reported.

The 51-year-old reached the peak early on Sunday, confirmed by the Nepali tourism department's Everest base camp office, according to a spokesman.

This photograph taken on May 31, 2021 shows mountaineers climbing the Hillary Step during their ascend of the South face to summit Mount Everest (8,848.86-metre), in Nepal. (Photo by Lakpa SHERPA / AFP)

Cool first climbed the 8,849-metre peak in 2004 and has since returned almost every year. Mount Everest sits on the border between Nepal and China and can be climbed from either side.

The overall record for the most Everest summits is held by Sherpa guide Kami Rita Sherpa, who reached the summit for a 30th time last year and is currently leading another expedition, aiming for his 31st ascent.

Sherpas are an ethnic group from the region whose members often work as guides and porters for mountaineers from abroad. - BERNAMA-dpa