Kenton Cool Back on Top: The British Now Have 19 “Everests”

While most of us struggle to climb the stairs to a third-floor apartment, 51-year-old British mountaineer Kenton Cool has conquered Everest with Olympic calm… for the nineteenth time. This time, he was accompanied by Nepali Sherpa Dorji Gyaljen, who could tell you what it’s like to climb to the top of the world—if he weren’t busy with his own twenty-third ascent.

For those not keeping track of the mountain rankings: Cool holds the world record for Everest ascents among those whose passports don’t say “Sherpa.” Among the Sherpas, though, the record is an intimidatingly cosmic 30 ascents, held by Kami Rita, who right now is somewhere on Everest’s slopes, probably considering adding another peak to his collection.

Cool began his saga in 2004 and has since checked almost every year to see whether the view from the top has changed—and to test his own endurance. Still, the climber treats his own fame with British composure and even a hint of embarrassment: “I’m surprised by all the fuss—Sherpas have far more ascents,” he remarked in 2022, after his 16th time.

This time, Kenton was a bit nervous: the weather forecast, like a fickle DJ, just wouldn’t play the right track. But when the “window” opened, he and his team skillfully “slipped” between streams of tourists, successfully avoiding the notorious “traffic jams” at 8,849 meters.

While Kenton was setting records, other Everest climbers this year, unfortunately, did not avoid tragedy. According to media reports, at least two climbers from India and the Philippines died on the mountain, a reminder that Everest is not just about flag selfies, but also a harsh test of endurance.

Fellow climbers congratulate Cool, quietly envying his stamina and collection of experiences. “Kenton is a great storyteller with tales from two decades on the mountain,” says American adventurer Adrian Ballinger.

Cool himself is already preparing for new summits (literally). After all, there are still thousands of staircases down below that he has yet to conquer.