# Ang Rita Sherpa

_Nepalese mountain climber (1948–2020)_

Canonical: https://diginpl.com/people/ang-rita-sherpa
Last updated: 2026-10-07

> Ang Rita Sherpa was a Nepalese mountaineer who climbed Mount Everest ten times without supplemental oxygen between 1983 and 1996. His sixth climb set the world record for the most successful ascents of Mount Everest, which he re-set on his tenth climb. Although others have since summited Everest more, he still holds the record for most summits without supplemental oxygen. He was also the first, and to date only, person to climb Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen in winter. He was nicknamed the "Snow Leopard" by his peers.

## Quick facts

- **Born:** 1948 ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q596334#P569))
- **Place of birth:** Thame ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q596334#P19))
- **Died:** 21 September 2020 ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q596334#P570))
- **Place of death:** Kathmandu ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q596334#P20))
- **Citizenship:** Nepal ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q596334#P27))
- **Occupation:** mountaineer ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q596334#P106))

## Early life and education

- He spent his childhood looking after the yaks and as a porter on trading expeditions across the Himalayas to Tibet. ([BBC News नेपाली](https://www.bbc.com/nepali/news-54235364))
- He joined mountaineering as a porter at the age of 15. ([Ujyaalo Online](https://ujyaaloonline.com/story/43425/2020/9/21/dipendra-shah-angrita-sherpa))
- He did not receive any formal education or mountaineering training. ([BBC News नेपाली](https://www.bbc.com/nepali/news-54235364))
- His grandson, Phura Gyaljen Sherpa, from his youngest son, died during the 2026 spring Everest expedition. ([everestchronicle.com](https://everestchronicle.com/sherpa-climber-dies-on-everest-during-summit-preparations))

## Career

- He went on to climb dozens of mountains including Mount Everest, K2, Cho Oyu, Lhotse, Manaslu, Annapurna and Dhaulagiri, multiple times without supplementary oxygen. ([ekantipur.com](https://ekantipur.com/news/2020/09/21/160067293260271482.html))
- He is thought to have successfully summited eight-thousanders a total of 18 times, almost all of them without oxygen. ([BBC News नेपाली](https://www.bbc.com/nepali/news-54235364))
- Sherpa first climbed Mount Everest in 1983. ([BBC News](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-54239110))
- According to his family, King Birendra had sent Crown Prince Dipendra to relay his request that Sherpa retire from mountaineering, in view of his deteriorating health. ([Ujyaalo Online](https://ujyaaloonline.com/story/43425/2020/9/21/dipendra-shah-angrita-sherpa))
- He stopped mountaineering following the visit by the Crown Prince. ([ekantipur.com](https://ekantipur.com/news/2020/09/21/160067293260271482.html))
- Sherpa was the first person to reach the summit of Everest in winter without supplementary oxygen, a feat he achieved on 22 December 1987. ([Explorersweb](https://explorersweb.com/the-climbing-history-of-winter-everest/))

## Key decisions and achievements

- Sherpa was a recipient of the Order of Gorkha Dakshina Bahu and the Order of Tri Shakti Patta. ([ekantipur.com](https://ekantipur.com/news/2020/09/21/160067293260271482.html))

_Cited sentences quoted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ang_Rita_Sherpa&oldid=1358948143), CC BY-SA 4.0._

## Questions

**When was Ang Rita Sherpa born?**  
Ang Rita Sherpa was born on 1948 in Thame.

## Related

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- [Suman Pokhrel](https://diginpl.com/people/suman-pokhrel)
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- [Gyanendra of Nepal](https://diginpl.com/people/gyanendra-of-nepal)
- [Birendra of Nepal](https://diginpl.com/people/birendra-of-nepal)
- [Nirmal Purja](https://diginpl.com/people/nirmal-purja)
- [Dipendra of Nepal](https://diginpl.com/people/dipendra-of-nepal)
- [Udit Narayan](https://diginpl.com/people/udit-narayan)
- [Śuddhodana](https://diginpl.com/people/suddhodana)
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- [Tribhuvan of Nepal](https://diginpl.com/people/tribhuvan-of-nepal)
- [Kathmandu](https://diginpl.com/places/kathmandu)
- [Thame, Nepal](https://diginpl.com/places/thame-nepal)

## Sources

- [Wikipedia (English): Ang Rita Sherpa](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ang_Rita_Sherpa) — [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
- [Wikipedia (Nepali): आङरिता शेर्पा](https://ne.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A4%86%E0%A4%99%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%BE_%E0%A4%B6%E0%A5%87%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AA%E0%A4%BE) — [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
- [Wikidata item Q596334](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q596334) — [CC0 1.0](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- [Image: ANG RITA.jpg by RACHILE (CC BY-SA 4.0)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ANG_RITA.jpg)
- [Wikipedia (English), revision used for cited facts: Ang Rita Sherpa](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ang_Rita_Sherpa&oldid=1358948143) — [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
- [BBC News नेपाली: 'हिउँचितुवा' आङरिता शेर्पाको निधन (21 September 2020)](https://www.bbc.com/nepali/news-54235364)
- [Ujyaalo Online: आङरिता शेर्पाको कोठामै आएर तत्कालीन युवराज दीपेन्द्रले भन्नुभयो, 'अब सक्नुहुन्न, हिमाल नचढ्नुस्'](https://ujyaaloonline.com/story/43425/2020/9/21/dipendra-shah-angrita-sherpa)
- [everestchronicle.com: Grandson of Everest legend Ang Rita Sherpa dies in fall near Camp III (2026-05-12)](https://everestchronicle.com/sherpa-climber-dies-on-everest-during-summit-preparations)
- [ekantipur.com: 'हिउँचितुवा' आङरिता शेर्पाको निधन](https://ekantipur.com/news/2020/09/21/160067293260271482.html)
- [BBC News: Everest's legendary Snow Leopard Sherpa dies at 72 (21 September 2020)](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-54239110)
- [Explorersweb: The Climbing History of Winter Everest » Explorersweb (2024-11-24)](https://explorersweb.com/the-climbing-history-of-winter-everest/)

## Licence and attribution

Text from the Wikipedia article Ang Rita Sherpa, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page's text is shared under the same licence. Facts from Wikidata (CC0). Image: ANG RITA.jpg — RACHILE, CC BY-SA 4.0.

## Cite this page

"Ang Rita Sherpa". DigiNepal. Last updated 7 October 2026. https://diginpl.com/people/ang-rita-sherpa. Retrieved 4 November 2026.