Local mountaineer becomes first Afghan to summit Mount Everest

Samuel Sidiqi, a trailblazing adventurer, on Wednesday became the first Afghan to reach the summit of Mount Everest – etching his name forever in history. 

In a message to Ariana News on Thursday he said: “I was able to summit Everest yesterday, and hiked safely down today [to Base Camp].”

Sidiqi embarked on his Everest expedition with the aim of raising awareness and generating funds for the development of skiing and mountaineering through the charitable trust he established, Afghan Peaks.

In conquering this towering peak, he showcased his personal determination and resilience and said he hopes his achievement serves as an inspiring message to the youth of Afghanistan – that with unwavering dedication, Afghans can overcome any obstacle and achieve greatness.

“By climbing Mount Everest, I aim to convey a powerful message to all Afghan boys and girls, empowering them to believe that they can accomplish anything they set their minds to,” he said. 

“Despite the challenges that our nation has faced in the last half century, Afghanistan possesses boundless potential for growth. Through hard work and unwavering determination, we can pave the way for a prosperous future.”

Sidiqi has long been dedicated to developing the mountains of Afghanistan in terms of sport, safety and nature conservation through his Afghan Peaks Charitable Trust. 

Over the past three years, Afghan Peaks has sponsored an exhilarating ski race in Bamiyan, in Afghanistan.

He stated: “My ascent of Everest serves as a clarion call to the world, drawing attention to Afghan Peak’s mission of developing Afghanistan’s breathtaking mountains, which hold incredible promise for mountain sports and tourism. While we already host an annual ski race in Bamiyan, Afghan Peaks envisions a future of many ski teams across the mountainous regions of Afghanistan, awaiting support from passionate individuals and organizations.”

Towering at an impressive 8,849 meters (29,031 feet), Mount Everest in the Himalayas is the world’s highest peak and for thousands of mountaineers around the world, summiting Everest is the pinnacle in their climbing careers. 

May is the busiest month on Mount Everest, and according to The Himalayan Database, a website that tracks Himalayan mountaineering, approximately 80 percent of the 11,341 successful Everest summits have occurred between the dates May 15 and 26.

The peak is located between Nepal and Tibet, an autonomous region of China and the first ever recorded people to climb Everest were Edmund Hillary, a mountaineer from New Zealand, and his Tibetan guide Tenzing Norgay. They climbed the mountain in 1953 and hold the record together. 

While climbing Mount Everest has become a popular expedition for mountaineers, it is a dangerous undertaking and requires a lot of mountaineering experience and a clean bill of health. 

The snow and ice on the mountain create deadly hazards like avalanches, and there is only a limited climbing season due to bad weather conditions. 

But perhaps the biggest danger is the altitude. Most climbers are not accustomed to the high altitude and low oxygen levels and rely on bottled oxygen they bring along. 

This is why the area above 8,000 meters (26,000 feet) elevation on Everest is called the “death zone.” Climbers who spend long periods in this region can develop altitude sickness and even brain swelling.