Naila Kiani, a 37-year-old Pakistani mountaineer, has scaled Mount Manaslu in Nepal, the world's eighth-highest mountain at 8,163 metres. She is now preparing to fly to China to take on the Tibetan peaks of Shishapangma and Cho Oyu, in her bid to become the first woman in the UAE to climb all 14 of the world's mountains over 8,000 meters.
Kiani completed the ascent of Manaslu on September 21, after a 12-hour ascent through the night. She was forced to overcome illness during the climb, but said that the weather was on her side.
"We had really good weather for Manaslu so it was straightforward," she told The National.
"The problem was I was not well, as I had an infection on my foot and lips, so I had been taking antibiotics and not feeling great."
"Climbing one 8,000-meter peak is a challenge, physically and mentally, and I have climbed six so far this year," she said.
Kiani, who took up climbing only two years ago, has already scaled K2, Mount Everest, Lhotse and Annapurna in Nepal, as well as Nanga Parbat, Gasherbrum I and II in Pakistan, and Broad Reach on the border with China.
She was joined on the Manaslu expedition by an international support group that included a Pakistani, American, Japanese, Macedonian and Nepalese climber, as well as a small group of Nepalese sherpas.
Kiani's achievement is a remarkable one, and she is an inspiration to climbers and women everywhere.
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