Jayanthi Kuru-Utumpala became the first Sri Lankan ever to climb to the top of Mt Everest (29,029ft).

She departed from Camp 4 at around 9pm the previous evening with her fellow Sri Lankan and climbing partner Johann Peries. Johann made it to beyond Camp 4 and Jayanthi along with her Sherpa continued to the summit. This was a strenuous overnight trek through the Death Zone of Everest that was lit by the full moon, a statement from their support team in Colombo said.

The Death Zone is the region above 26,000ft where climbers face many challenges to survive including extremely low temperatures, and there is only about a third of the amount of oxygen as there is at sea level. This makes breathing difficult, let alone climbing to the top of the mountain. The duo have been training and acclimatizing to these tough conditions for the past two months on Mt Everest, and for many years prior to that on mountains both in Sri Lanka, as well as abroad.

Jayanthi and Johann are extremely experienced and determined to succeed and this expedition highlights their mental and physical toughness. Jayanthi and Johann are currently on their way back down to Base Camp where they will be able to provide more details of their journey to step foot on top of the world.