LAHORE: The young Pakistani top climbers, Naila Kiani and Shehroze Kashif, have successfully summited Annapurna I, the world’s 10th highest mountain.

According to a press release issued by the BARD Foundation, the duo has fulfilled their aim of raising the Pakistani flag at the top of this 8,000-metre Annapurna 1 at 6:31am on Monday in Nepal.

Naila and Shehroze shared their sentiments over the phone, saying “This has been one of the difficult ascents of our journey; however, it was a matter of honor and immense pleasure to have raised our prestigious flag on the top of Annapurna peak. Here, we would like to emphasize that our primary purpose is to make our country proud while portraying a soft and positive image of Pakistan at a global level. We would also like to let the world know that this passion is not going to stop anywhere. Our mission is to promote mountain climbing and generate opportunities for more young souls like us.”

Shehroze started his journey at the age of 11 when he first summited Makra Peak (3,885 m). Now, he is the youngest mountaineer in the world to summit 11 peaks of over 8,000m. At the age of 19, he successfully climbed Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak at 8,849m, becoming one of the youngest in the country to do so. In the same year, he also scaled K2 and became the youngest climber in the world. His mission is to become the youngest in the world to climb all 14 peaks.

On the other hand, ms Kiani summited K2 in the first attempt and has also scaled Gasherbrum-I and Gasherbrum-II. Now, she is aiming to summit Mount Everest. This recent summit is just another feather in their cap.

Naila has been known by the title “Bard Sinf-e-Ahan” for her long-time association with the foundation. However, Shehroze has just come on board with BARD.

The BARD Foundation will be part of his upcoming ventures in the quest of summiting all 14 8,000ers, where Shehroze is aiming to set a new world record of being the youngest in the world to do so.

Published in Dawn, April 18th, 2023