Indian Summits Everest No-O2

May 23, 2024 Angela Benavides 8000ers | Everest

Close shot of Skalzang Rigzin with sunglasses and baseball cap — Skalzang Rigzin. Photo: Skalzang Rigzin

Climbing without supplementary oxygen, Skalzang Rigzin of India summited Everest today at 4:30 am. This marks the second confirmed no-O2 summit on Everest this season. At a time when hundreds on oxygen summit Everest in a single day, doing so without bottled O2 is still a dangerous feat, as this year’s fatalities indicate.

Rigzin, 42, is the president of the Mountain Guide Association of Ladakh, in the Indian Himalaya, where he has been guiding and climbing for nearly 30 years. He has previously summited Annapurna without supplementary oxygen.

Close shot of Rigzin on a summit in the fog.

Rigzin on the summit of Annapurna in 2022. Photo: Peak Promotion

Angela Benavides

Angela Benavides graduated university in journalism and specializes in high-altitude mountaineering and expedition news. She has been writing about climbing and mountaineering, adventure and outdoor sports for 20+ years.

Prior to that, Angela Benavides spent time at/worked at a number of local and international media. She is also experienced in outdoor-sport consultancy for sponsoring corporations, press manager and communication executive, and a published author.

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