The Mountain Queen's 11th: Lhakpa Sherpa breaks her own Everest record again
On the same May day Kami Rita logged his 32nd Everest summit, Lhakpa Sherpa quietly extended her own women's record to 11 — the most ascents of Everest by any woman in history.
The "Everest Man" Kami Rita Sherpa grabbed the headlines this spring with his 32nd summit. But on that same May day, another Nepali legend rewrote the record books too — with far less fanfare than she deserved. Lhakpa Sherpa, the climber the world calls the "Mountain Queen," reached the top of Everest for an 11th time, extending her own record as the most successful female Everest climber in history.
Key facts
- Lhakpa Sherpa summited Everest for an 11th time in May 2026
- It is the women's all-time record — her own, broken again
- Achieved the same day as Kami Rita Sherpa's record 32nd
- She is the subject of the documentary Mountain Queen
The most accomplished woman on Everest
Lhakpa Sherpa's story is the stuff of films — and indeed one has been made about her. From humble beginnings in Nepal's mountains, through years of hardship, she has built a record no other woman has come close to: now eleven summits of the world's highest mountain. Each time she returns, she breaks her own mark. In a sport whose records are dominated by men, she stands utterly alone at the top of the women's list.
Why it matters
Records like Lhakpa's do more than fill a list — they reshape who believes the mountains are for them. For the growing number of women choosing to trek and climb in Nepal, she is living proof that the Himalaya belongs to them too. It is the same spirit that runs from Junko Tabei, the first woman atop Everest in 1975, to the women's groups walking the Annapurna and Everest trails today.
What this means for you
You do not need eleven summits to follow in the Mountain Queen's footsteps — just the first step. The trek to Everest Base Camp walks through her world, and we run trips designed for women trekkers and mixed groups alike, at a pace that lets everyone arrive. The Himalaya is for you, too.
Source: Al Jazeera; reporting on the 2026 Everest season.
Cover photo: Vertex Holiday via Pexels (Pexels License).
来源： Al Jazeera
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