Sirbaz Khan reached a historic milestone on Monday as he successfully ascended Cho Oyu peak in Tibet, China, which stands as the world’s sixth-highest peak. This extraordinary feat has secured his position as the first Pakistani to conquer 13 mountains exceeding 8,000 meters (26,247 feet) in elevation.
Khan, along with his teammate Naila Kiani, embarked on the challenging journey to conquer the 8,188-meter (26,863-foot) Cho Oyu peak, employing a marathon alpine-style climb that took them over 28 hours. Notably, they accomplished this remarkable feat without the use of supplementary oxygen. This extraordinary achievement was confirmed by the Alpine Club of Pakistan, the nation’s official mountaineering organization.
In an additional historic achievement, Naila Kiani, Khan’s climbing partner, became the first Pakistani woman to scale ten peaks exceeding 8,000 meters in height.
Read this: Naila Kiani creates history as the first Pakistani to conquer Cho Oyu
Following this monumental triumph, Sirbaz Khan is now just one summit away from fulfilling his dream of becoming the first Pakistani to conquer all 14 peaks above 8,000 meters globally. Karrar Haidri, the Secretary General of the Alpine Club, shared this exciting news with Anadolu.
Shishapangma, an awe-inspiring mountain with an elevation of 8,027 meters (26,335 feet) above sea level, awaits Khan as the final challenge on his remarkable journey.
Notably, Sirbaz Khan is trailed by Shehroze Kashif and Naila Kiani, who have successfully ascended 12 and 10 summits exceeding 8,000 meters, respectively.
Sirbaz Khan, aged 32, hails from the picturesque Hunza valley in northern Gilgit-Baltistan, sharing borders with China. His remarkable climbing journey commenced in 2016.
In 2019, he achieved the unprecedented feat of becoming the first Pakistani to conquer Mount Lhotse, the world’s fourth-highest peak at 8,516 meters (27,940 feet), located in Nepal, all without the aid of supplemental oxygen.
Furthermore, Khan’s list of accomplishments includes the ascent of the 8,125-meter (26,657-foot) Nanga Parbat in 2017, the awe-inspiring 8,611-meter (28,251-foot) K2 in 2018, and the challenging Broad Peak at 8,163 meters (26,782 feet) in 2019.
In the preceding year, he conquered Mount Annapurna, standing tall at 8,091 meters (26,545 feet), the formidable 8,035-meter (26,362-foot) Gasherbrum II, and the iconic 8,848-meter (29,029-foot) Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak.
Naila Kiani, a Dubai-based Pakistani banker and a mother of two, gained widespread recognition after her wedding photoshoot at the K2 base camp in 2018 went viral on social media, adding to her list of remarkable achievements.
