Kathmandu: The youngest person to have
conquered Mount Everest, 13-year-old American Jordan Romero,
arrived safely back at Camp 2 on his descent from the world`s
highest peak, his website said Sunday.
Jordan, from California, was "currently flat on his belly
knocked out" following the climb to the summit early on
Saturday, according to the team`s website that said he had
secured the record "with style and flair".
The teenager, who climbed with his father, is three years
younger than previous record holder Temba Tshering of Nepal.
Over 50 mountaineers reached the top yesterday, among
them Apa Sherpa, who broke his own world record by summiting
for the 20th time.
Jordan`s supporters and fans posted congratulations on
his website (jordanromero.com), but the expedition has
attracted criticism from some mountaineers, who said he was
too young to undertake such a dangerous climb.
"At 13, one lacks the mental and physical maturity that
comes with age to tackle climbs in such altitude," Ang
Tshering Sherpa, president of the Nepal Mountaineering
Association, said.
"In this case, it was a big risk."
Authorities in Nepal do not grant climbing licences for
Everest to anyone under the age of 16 so the team -- led by
Jordan`s father Paul, a paramedic -- climbed from the Tibet
side.
Thousands of people have reached the summit since Edmund
Hillary and Tenzing Norgay became the first people to conquer
the 8,848-metre mountain in 1953.
PTI
