BEIJING — A 13-year-old American boy became the youngest climber to reach the top of Mount Everest today, breaking the former record as part of his quest to climb the highest peaks on all seven continents.
A spokesman for Jordan Romero said the boy’s team called him by satellite phone from the summit of the world’s highest mountain, 29,035 feet above sea level.
“Their dreams have now come true. Everyone sounded unbelievably happy,” a statement on Jordan’s blog said this morning.
The teenager with long curly hair — who climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa when he was 9 years old — said he was inspired by a painting in his school hallway of the highest summits on the seven continents.
“I’m just very proud of him,” Jordan’s mother told The Associated Press by telephone just before he reached the peak, as she watched his progress on a live GPS tracker online.
When asked what she would say to him once he reached the summit, she started crying. “I can’t really say that. It’s just emotional.”
Jordan, from Big Bear, Calif., was climbing Mount Everest with his father, his father’s girlfriend and three Sherpa guides. He left for the peak from the base camp on the Chinese side. Everest was Jordan’s first challenge above 26,240 feet.
Unlike neighboring Nepal, the other approach to Everest, China has no age limit for climbers. Jordan registered with Chinese officials in April, said Zhang Mingxing, secretary general of the China Tibet Mountaineering Association.
No interview with Jordan would be possible until he returns to advance base camp, which could take a couple of days, said Rob Bailey, the U.S.-based spokesman for Jordan’s climbing team.
The team planned to do something special for Jordan at the mountaintop but was keeping it a surprise even from him, Bailey said.
Seven Summits
Jordan Romero, 13, has climbed six of the Seven Summits over the past four years:
Africa: Kilimanjaro, 19,340 feet
Europe: Elbrus, 18,510 feet
Asia: Everest, 29,035 feet
South America: Aconcagua, 22,841 feet
North America: Mount McKinley, 20,320 feet
Oceania: Carstensz Pyramid, 16,023 feet
(The last one is Vinson Massif, 16,067 feet, in Antarctica.)
