Sheikha Asma Al-Thani conquers Annapurna 1, the world’s 10th-highest mountain
Qatari mountaineer Sheikha Asma Al-Thani has been blazing a trail over the last few years, inspiring young women by scaling some of the world’s biggest mountain peaks.
Sheikha Asma added yet another feather to her cap when she reached the summit of Annapurna 1, the world’s 10th-highest mountain, standing at 8,091M above sea level.
She has thus conquered seven of the 14 summits around the world that stand at above 8,000M.
أسطورة تسلق الجبال الشيخة أسماء بنت ثاني آل ثاني تصل إلى قمة جبل أنابورنا 1 عاشر أعلى جبل في العالم بارتفاع 8091 متراً ، مسجلة إنجازاً عربياً جديداً بوصولها لـ 7 قمم فوق إرتفاع 8000 م
— Team Qatar (@qatar_olympic) April 17, 2023
Our mountaineering legend Sheikha Asma bint Thani Al-Thani summits… pic.twitter.com/nWmTZpr3cs
The Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC), where she works as its Director of Marketing and Communications, hailed it as a new Arab achievement.
“Our mountaineering legend Sheikha Asma bint Thani Al Thani summits Annapurna 1, the 10th highest mountain in the world with a height of 8,091m. This is a new Arab accomplishment for reaching seven summits above 8,000M,” the QOC tweeted.
The Annapurna, situated in the Annapurna mountain range of Gandaki Province, north-central Nepal, is known for the difficulty and danger involved in its ascent.
Sheikha Asma recalled her experience on Instagram.
“We reached the summit of Annapurna 1 on April 15, drained and exhausted but determined to make it up and down safely. Annapurna isn’t for the faint of heart, and it’ll test every part of your body and mind,” she wrote.
“Climbing mountains teaches me many things, but one of the most important is the value of the people you surround yourself with. Your community.”
Sheikha Asma thanked everyone who helped her summit Annapurna, including the rope-fixing team led by Mingma Tenzi Sherpa.
“Despite not having O2, I’m truly thankful to @nimsdai (Nirmal Purja, a Nepal-born British mountaineer who holds multiple mountaineering world records) for getting me down to safety when I was exhausted. On this mountain, leadership is essential, and each decision he made affected both our safety and the climb. And I’m glad we’re climbing together because he never loses sight of what I’m trying to accomplish,” she said.
"People around you, as I already stated, make a difference. They either take you to the top or leave you behind. Choose wisely. 7 out of the 14 8,000M mountains complete! Let’s do this!” She wrote.
Nirmal Purja could also not hide his delight.
"Giving up is not in the blood. Super proud of my team for summitting #Annapurna. 100% success rate – with every members summitting and back safely!" he wrote.
Sheikha Asma is the first Qatari woman to reach the summit of Mt Everest, and is also the first Arab to reach the summit of K2 and Mt Kanchenjunga.
Earlier, she became the first Qatari to ski to both the North and South Poles, while also scaling Mt Lhotse less than 24 hours after reaching the summit of Mt Everest.
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