Korean 'first woman to conquer 14 highest peaks'

KATHMANDU - A South Korean climber has become the first woman to scale 14 of the world's highest mountains.

Seoul broadcaster KBS television showed live coverage last night of Oh Eun Sun, 44, reaching the summit of Annapurna in Nepal and affixing a South Korean flag to the peak.

It was the final hurdle of a fiercely contested race against a Spanish rival to conquer all 14 Himalayan peaks more than 8000m above sea level.

The 8091m peak of Annapurna was her final challenge, said Park Eun Joo, an official from outerwear maker Blackyak, in Seoul.

Oh has been chased to the record by Edurne Pasaban of Spain. The 36-year-old has only the 8027m-high Mt Shisha Pangma left to climb.

Pasaban has questioned whether her South Korean rival climbed to the top of Mt Kanchenjunga, the world's third-highest, last May. Park dismissed the accusation as groundless.

Oh missed the chance to reach the peak of Annapurna last year because of bad weather. Snow and wind stopped her from making the final ascent over the weekend. She has described mountain climbing as "a sort of addiction" and her destiny.

"As long as I set my goal to become the world's first woman to conquer the world's 14 highest peaks, I will go to all lengths to achieve it," she said in an interview with the Korea Times in Seoul in February.

Before embarking on the expedition, she tried to refrain from drinking alcohol, believing that there is a spiritual entity determining whether or not to allow a climber to reach the summit, she told the newspaper.

As she departed for Nepal, she assured her fans she was in strong physical condition.

"I'm feeling good, and I will do my hardest to scale the mountain with faith," Park quoted Oh as saying before her departure.