• According to Everest Today, his body was found a few meters below the summit of Mt Everest.
• A Nepalese was also missing alongside Cheruiyot.
Image: CHERUIYOT KIRUI
Missing Kenyan mountaineer Cheruiyot Kirui has been found dead.
According to Everest Today, his body was found a few meters below the summit of Mt Everest.
"With profound sadness, we share the news of Kenyan mountaineer Cheruiyot Kirui's passing on Mt Everest. His body was found a few meters below the summit point of Mt Everest.
"His indomitable will and passion for mountaineering will forever be an inspiration. We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends during this time of sorrow."
Cheruiyot was on a daring mission to reach the summit of Mt Everest, without supplementary oxygen.
"He was accompanied by a Nepali climber Nawang Sherpa, whose fate is still unknown."
The Nepalese was also missing alongside Cheruiyot.
Cheruiyot was a banker. He had climbed to the peak of Mt Kenya, 15 times.
Summiting Everest requires a lot of experience in mountaineering elsewhere, a certificate of good health, equipment and a trained Nepalese guide.
The snow and ice on the mountain create deadly hazards, such as avalanches, and there is only a limited climbing season due to bad weather conditions.
At 8,849 metres, Everest’s summit has approximately one-third the air pressure that exists at sea level.
This significantly reduces a climber's ability to breathe in enough oxygen. Because of this, scientists have determined that the human body is not capable of remaining indefinitely above 6,000 metres.
The chances of success are much less than when climbing without supplemental oxygen.
Ahead of starting his expedition, Cheruiyot had said that climbing with supplemental oxygen would be quite easy, and that is not what he wanted.
“The challenge for me would be without supplemental oxygen; otherwise, I wouldn't feel like I've achieved much. So I want to see how my body can cope in such altitude,” he said.
Climbers who ascend higher than 8,000 metres on Mount Everest enter the "death zone".
In this area, oxygen is so limited that the body's cells start to die, and judgment becomes impaired.