A record-setting teen climber returns home to Nepal to a hero's welcome

A record-setting teen climber returns home to Nepal to a hero’s welcome

1 of 10 |

Mingma Sherpa, uncle of 18-year-old Nima Rinji Sherpa, the youngest person to scale all the world’s 14 highest peaks, celebrates with his family upon Nima’s arrival at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

2 of 10 |

Family members of Dawa Yangzum Sherpa, the first Nepalese woman to scale the world’s 14 highest peaks, welcome her upon her arrival at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

3 of 10 |

Nepalese mountaineer Nima Rinji Sherpa, the youngest person to scale all the world’s 14 highest peaks, waves Nepalese flag as hi arrives at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

4 of 10 |

Friends and family of Nepalese mountaineers, including Nima Rinji Sherpa, the youngest person to scale all the world’s 14 highest peaks, gather at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

5 of 10 |

Nepalese mountaineer Nima Rinji Sherpa, the youngest person to scale all the world’s 14 highest peaks, waves Nepalese flag as his arrives at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

6 of 10 |

7 of 10 |

8 of 10 |

9 of 10 |

Friends and family of Nepalese mountaineers, including Nima Rinji Sherpa, the youngest person to scale all the world’s 14 highest peaks, dance upon their arrival at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

10 of 10 |

Friends and family of Nepalese mountaineers welcome Nima Rinji Sherpa, the youngest person to scale all the world’s 14 highest peaks, upon his arrival at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

By BINAJ GURUBACHARYA

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — A Sherpa teenager who became the youngest person to scale all the world’s 14 highest peaks returned home to Nepal on Monday to a hero’s welcome.

Nima Rinji Sherpa, 18, reached the 8,027-meter (26,335-foot) summit of Mount Shishapangma in China last week, completing his mission to climb the world’s peaks that are more than 8,000 meters (26,247 feet) high. He broke a previous record by another Sherpa, who was 30 years old at the time.

Nepal’s Tourism Minister Badri Prasad Pandey, along with members of the climbing community, fellow Sherpas and supporters, lined up outside Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu to offer flowers and scarfs to Nima Rinji.

“I am very happy and I want to say thank you so much everyone. It was a difficult mission but finally I was able to be successful,” Nima Rinji told reporters.

He comes from a well-known family in the Sherpa mountaineering community. His father and two uncles run the Seven Summits Treks in Nepal, which has become a leading company serving clients in Nepal, China and Pakistan.

Famous for their skills on the world’s highest peaks, Sherpas were once relegated to support staff but now are emerging out of the shadows of their Western peers. Several mountaineering records have been achieved by Sherpa climbers.

Not PARSE.LY: China

Afraid of losing the US-Canada trade pact, Mexico alters its laws and removes Chinese parts

Canadian security forum honors Kremlin critic and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Vladimir Kara-Murza

US figure skater Amber Glenn wins Cup of China to secure place in Grand Prix Final

After his latest and final climb on Wednesday, Nima Rinji wrote on his Instagram account that it was “a tribute to every Sherpa who has ever dared to dream beyond the traditional boundaries set for them.”

“Mountaineering is more than labor; it is a testament to our strength, resilience, and passion,” he wrote, adding that he wanted to show that the younger generation of Sherpas can rise above the stereotype of being only support climbers and embrace their potential.

“We are not just guides; we are trailblazers. Let this be a call to every Sherpa to see the dignity in our work, the power in our heritage, and the limitless possibilities in our future,” he said.