Kathmandu, May 29: Everest's new speed king, Lakpa Gelu Sherpa, 36, said today he had ingested only fruit juice during his record sprint to the top of the world's tallest peak earlier this week. "I did not lose time ... I did not take any solid food. I only drank some vitaminised fruit juice," Lakpa said, adding that he was "very proud and honoured" to have set the record during the golden jubilee celebrations marking the first ascent of the mountain 50 years ago.
Lakpa reached the summit of the 8,848 metre peak from base camp on Monday via the southeast route in a time of 10 hours 56 minutes.
It took Sir Edmund Hillary and his climbing partner the late Tenzing Norgay Sherpa more than seven weeks from base camp to the summit, which they reached on May 29, 1953- exactly 50 years ago today.
As Hillary, guest of honour for anniversary celebrations, pointed out in Kathmandu yesterday, however, he and Tenzing had to forge their own route through the tricky Khumbu icefall and further up the mountain without the benefit of modern equipment, or of ropes and ladders already fixed in place.
"We had to do everything ourselves," said Hillary, clearly unimpressed by the new trends on Everest.
Lakpa acknowledged he had been assisted by the fact that more than 20 expeditions had reached the summit ahead of him as part of the golden jubilee celebrations.
"During the ascent I benefited by using nearly 2,500 metres of fixed ropes set by other expeditions at different heights," he told on his return today from Everest to Kathmandu. Bureau Report