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Malavath Purna Becomes Youngest Female To Climb Mount Everest
13-year-old Malavath Purna Becomes Youngest Female To Climb Mount Everest
61 years after Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay first climbed Mount Everest, Malavath Purna, a 13-year-old from Andhra Pradesh, India, made history this week as the youngest female to scale the iconic mountain.
When Purna reached the peak of Mount Everest, she cried tears of joy. The young teenager was a long way from home in her remote village in Telangana.
"I was initially afraid, but the training I received helped me overcome my fear. I never thought of giving up," Purna told the BBC.
Purna climbed the mountain with 16-year-old, Anand Kumar, a fellow friend from her village, Shekhar Babu, a mountaineering expert, and a group of Sherpa. The young climbers brought photos of B.R. Ambedkar, the Dalit leader, and raised the Indian flag when they reached the peak.
For Purna, climbing the mountain was more than just achieving a world record, it was to be a role model to young women everywhere.
“I feel lucky that I was given an opportunity to climb the highest peak in the world. It makes it clear that women can do anything,” said Purna in an interview with Nepal Republica.
Mountaineering experts are doubly impressed with her achievements, since Purna attempted the tougher route from the Tibetan side. Usually climbers take the route from Nepal, but the country only allows climbers above 16 years of age to attempt that journey.
Preparing For The Climb
Getting to Everest was a gruelling task for Purna and Kumar, who braved an extensive training period as part of their education with SWAEROES, an organization funded by the Ministry of Social Welfare. In preparation for her Everest climb, she trained in the mountains of Darjeeling and Ladakh.
For her the climb had a higher purpose beyond a world record. “The aim of my expedition was to inspire young people and students from my kind of background. For a tribal like me, opportunities are very rare and I was looking for one opportunity where I could prove my calibre,” she said to the BBC.
Heading Home
Since scaling Mount Everest, Purna is eager to get back to school and hopes to become a policewoman when she is older. But there’s one thing she won’t miss about the climb.
“The most challenging aspect of Everest was eating all that packaged food, soup and muesli. I can't wait to get home and eat my mother's fried chicken and rice,” she quipped.
Jordan Romero from California, US, holds the record for the youngest boy to climb Everest. He was also 13-year-old when he climbed the Everest in 2010.
Featured Image: sportskeeda
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