Xia Boyu, a double amputee, aspires to climb Everest after ban revoked

Xia Boyu, a Chinese climber who lost both legs to frostbite on Everest four decades ago is hoping to finally reach the summit after Nepal's top court overruled a controversial government ban on blind and double amputee climbers.

The 69-year-old said the measure, introduced in December to much criticism, was "discriminating against the disabled".

"I panicked after I heard the news because it meant I couldn't fulfil my dream. I thought, 'How can I now get a climbing permit?' Xia told AFP.

But last month, disability advocacy groups successfully overturned the ban in Nepal's highest court, arguing it contravened the UN convention on the rights of people with disabilities.

Xia's bid to summit the 8,848-metre (29,029-foot) mountain will be his fifth.

He was part of a Chinese national team in 1975 when the group encountered bad weather just below the summit.

Oxygen-starved and exposed to frigid temperatures, Xia suffered severe frostbite and lost both his feet.

In 1996, his legs were amputated just below the knee after he was diagnosed with lymphoma, a form of blood cancer.

The tenacious climber returned to Everest in 2014 but an avalanche killed 16 sherpa guides early in the season, forcing most expeditions to call off their summit bids.

Xia was back the following year, but the climbing season was again cut short when a powerful earthquake struck Nepal, killing around 9,000 people -- including 22 on Everest.

His last attempt was in 2016 when bad weather again forced him to turn back just 200 metres from the summit.

"Climbing Mount Everest is my dream. I have to realise it. It also represents a personal challenge, a challenge of fate," Xia said.

Source: AFP