Ang Rita Sherpa, known as the "Snow Leopard", died in Kathmandu on 21 September 2020, aged 72. He climbed Everest ten times without supplementary oxygen between 1983 and 1996, a record that still stands.
In short: Ang Rita is also the only person to have climbed Everest in winter without bottled oxygen (1987). He came from Yillajung in the Khumbu, near Thame.
Legacy
Ang Rita climbed at a time when Sherpas rarely received recognition. His records helped change how the world saw Nepali climbers, a story continued by Apa Sherpa and Kami Rita Sherpa.