Naila Kiani becomes first Pakistani woman to summit 12 peaks above 8,000m
Trailblazing mountaineer Naila Kiani scales Kanchenjunga, world's third highest mountain, on Friday morning, edges closer to joining elite 14 Peaks Club
Naila Kiani's facebook
Naila Kiani has summited Mount Kanchenjunga, world's third highest mountain, on Friday morning becoming the first Pakistani woman to summit 12 of the world’s 14 peaks above 8,000 meters.
According to her expedition organizer, Imagine Nepal, Kiani successfully reached the summit of Kanchenjunga early Friday morning. “Naila Kiani reached the summit of Kanchenjunga at 6:30 a.m. local time, becoming Pakistan’s leading female mountaineer with 12 eight-thousanders to her name,” confirmed Dawa Futi Sherpa, Operations Director at Imagine Nepal.
With only Dhaulagiri and Shishapangma in China remaining, Kiani is now just two peaks away from joining the elite “14 Peaks Club”—a distinction held by about 65 climbers worldwide. She is expected to attempt Dhaulagiri this August, again under the banner of Imagine Nepal.
Karrar Haidri, Secretary of the Alpine Club of Pakistan, hailed her achievement as a watershed moment for the country. “This is far more than just a climb—it is a monumental milestone in the history of Pakistani mountaineering and a moment of immense national pride,” he said.
A Dubai-based banker, amateur boxer, and mother of two, Kiani began her mountaineering journey in 2021 when she summited Gasherbrum II (8,035m), becoming the first Pakistani woman to do so. Her ascent of K2 the following year catapulted her to national fame, setting her on the path to scale all 14 of the world’s highest peaks.
In October 2023, Kiani narrowly survived an avalanche on Tibet’s Shishapangma, a tragic incident that claimed the lives of four climbers and left others missing. Undeterred, she has continued to pursue her ambitious goal.
