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Doha: Since March, Qatari mountaineer Sheikha Asma Al Thani had been waiting for a weather window to attempt the Annapurna 1 and that's exactly what she got this week as she reached the summit on April 15, 2023.
Drained and exhausted but determined to make it up and down safely is how she described her journey, adding, "Annapurna is not for the faint of heart and it will test every part of your body and mind."
Congratulations poured in from all quarters to the sports enthusiast as she wrote of her achievement on her social media channel. Qatar Olympic Committee described this as a new Arab achievement, stating, "Our mountaineering legend Sheikha Asma bint Thani Al-Thani summits Annapurna 1, world’s 10th highest mountain in the world with a height of 8,091m. This is a new Arab accomplishment for reaching 7 summits above 8000m."
Her last feat was being at the top of K2 few months back in July 2022, and prior to that it was Mount Denali which took her closer (one summit away) to her goal of completing the Explorers Grand Slam.
Praising the community surrounding her she wrote, "climbing mountains teaches me many things, but one of the most important is the value of the people you surround yourself with. Your community. I'm grateful to everyone who helped me summit Annapurna. I'm also grateful to the rope-fixing team lead by @mt.sherpa for enabling everyone to reach the top and return safely."
Conquering Annapurna 1 in Nepal was not an easy journey as she penned her troubles of not having Oxygen and then being helped by well-known mountaineer Nirmal Purja, who helped her get down to safety. Praising Purja, Sheikha Asma stated, "On this mountain, leadership is essential, and each decision he made affected both our safety and the climb. And I'm glad we're climbing together because he never loses sight of what I'm trying to accomplish."
Summiting Annapurna that's at a height of 8,091 metres, Sheikha Asma has now conquered 7 out of the 14 mountains that rise above 8000m.
For the Explorers Grand Slam, she began her journey with Kilimanjaro in 2014, after which she reached the North Pole in 2018, then conquered the Aconcagua in 2019. In 2021, Sheikha Asma was on top of Elbrus and then in 2022, she was at the top of Mount Vinson, from where she skied to the South Pole Last Degree. In May 2022, she reached her dream destination - the mighty Everest, followed by Mt Denali.
Sheikha Asma has also successfully summited Mount Lhotse, Kangchenjunga, Mount Ama Dablam, Mount Dhaulagiri, Mount Manaslu, and Labuche Peak.
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