When XiaÌýBoyuÌýfirst attempted Everest in 1975, he was 27 years old. Bad luck plagued the trip. They were just 500 feet shy ofÌýthe summit when weather forcedÌýhis team down. During the descent, a teammate lost his sleeping bag and XiaÌýoffered his up. As a result, Xia suffered severe frostbite on both his feet and eventually had to have them amputated.ÌýTwenty years later, he developed lymphoma and both legs were amputated just below the knees. But even after he lost his legs, he didn't lose his desire to summit the world's highest peak.Ìý
He tried again in 2014, but thatÌýexpedition ended prematurely when a seracÌýcollapsed, killing 16 climbers. In 2015, the devastating earthquake cut short the seasonÌýand forced Xia off the mountain. InÌý2016,Ìýhe got within 300 feet of the summit only, once again, to be turned back by bad weather. XiaÌýplanned to return last year, but the Nepal Ministry of Tourism announcedÌýthat it planned to ban double amputees from Everest. This year, the Ministry made the ban a rule,Ìýbut the country’s supreme court subsequentlyÌýÌýand Xia decided to make another attempt.ÌýÌý
AtÌý8:26 a.m., on Monday,Ìýthe now 70-year-old XiaÌýfinally stood on top of the world.
XiaÌýhad left the South Col atÌý8:00 p.m.,ÌýSundayÌýin good conditions. The wind was calm for most of the ascent and temperatures hovered near minus 10 Fahrenheit. He was guided by Kathmandu guide Mingma G Sherpa of . There were four other Chinese climbers who also summited:ÌýLiu Yi, Wu Jie, Lok Kee Siu, Ajie Hu, and Gao Li and Canadian Mikey Foreal.ÌýSix Sherpas accompanied them: Tamting Sherpa, Kili Pemba Sherpa, Pasang Gomba Sherpa, Kami 'Ang Tsering’ Sherpa, Dendi Sherpa in addition to the leader,ÌýDawa Gyalje Sherpa. (According to Dawa Gyalje, Nima Jangmu became the first Nepalese woman to summit Everest and Lhotse together in one season.) The 14 climbers were amongÌýthe first to summit Everest this season after a Sherpa teamÌýset the fixed ropes to the summit the previous afternoon.Ìý
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