Gurkha veteran Hari Budha Magar lost both his legs in Afghanistan while serving with the British Army. Though maimed, Magar was never defeated. On Friday, the 43-year-old successfully soldiered up the world’s tallest mountain.
Two double amputees have previously climbed to the top of Mount Everest in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas: Mark Inglis of New Zealand in 2006 and Xia Boyu of China in 2018. Magar is, however, the first person with above-the-knee amputations to have successfully summited the peak.
The Guardian reported that Magar, a father of three, left his native Nepal to serve as a corporal in the Gurkha regiment in the British Army. The Gurkha soldiers, whose motto is “Better to die than be a coward,” are known for carrying their 18-inch kukri knife into battle even to this day.
After losing his legs to an improvised explosive device in 2010, Magar had figured his life