Pakistani Sirbaz Khan scales Makalu; inches closer to being first Pakistani to climb all 14 peaks
Celebrated mountaineer Khan did the peak this time without supplemental oxygen.
Pakistani climber Sirbaz Khan, who is on a mission to become the first Pakistani to scale all 14 peaks above 8,000 meters, on Saturday, scaled Mount Makalu becoming the first Pakistani climber to climb 11 of the world’s highest 14 peaks, his expedition organizers said.
Celebrated mountaineer Khan did the peak this time without supplemental oxygen. “On 28th May around 8:00 am our team successfully stood on the summit of Mt.Makalu 8463m. Sirbaz Khan is the only Pakistani climber to complete 11 peaks above 8,000m,” Mingma Gyalje Sherpa aka Mingma G of Imagine Nepal, who organized Khan’s expedition wrote on Facebook.
Mingma G led a seven member team to the summit. This is his second Makalu summit without oxygen.
Other successful Makalu climbers from the team include Dong Hongjuan (China), Jill Wheatley (Canada), Dawa Gyalje Sherpa (Nepal), Tamting Sherpa (Nepal), Pasang Namgel Sherpa (Nepal).
On May 7, Khan had scaled Kanchanjengha (8,586 m), the world’s third highest peak, with other members of a team led by Mingma G. Sirbaz also helped fix the rope to the summit. He is one of the celebrated climbers in the climbing community.
Khan is on a mission to become the first member of 14 peak summitters’ club.
Another Pakistani climber Ali Sadpara had submitted eight mountains above 8,000 meters before he died in 2021.
He died on Mount K2 while trying to summit the killer mountain in winter following Nepali climbers’ historic winter ascent the same year.
Starting his climbing career in 2016, Khan has climbed seven peaks without supplemental oxygen including Mount Lhotse (8,516m) in 2019. He was the first Pakistani to summit Lothse without bottled oxygen.
After the successful Makalu summit he plans to climb G1 this summer. However, Cho Oyu and Shishapangma are not decided yet.
