Conquering one of the world's highest peaks at 49
Malaysian climber Mohd Khafiz Bachok successfully summited Mount Everest during a particularly dangerous and crowded climbing season. His achievement follows previous successful climbs of other major peaks, despite the significant risks posed by the Khumbu Icefall.
Why it matters
Highlights the increasing risks and overcrowding issues associated with high-altitude mountaineering in the era of commercialized Everest expeditions.
He did it against all odds. Mohd Khafiz Bachok, better known as Khafiz al Kicok, summited the world’s highest mountain in what is said to be one of the most unpredictable climbing seasons in Mount Everest history.
Khafiz is also the 30th Malaysian to do so since the first ones – M. Magendran and M. Mohandas – did it on May 23, 1997.
It could have been a doomed season. A huge serac stood in the way along the treacherous Khumbu Icefall. It halted the works of the “icefall doctors”, who were fixing ropes and preparing ladders to allow climbers to pass through.
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