British soldiers summit Everest using groundbreaking method
The climbers — Garth Miller, Alastair Carns, who is also the minister for veterans,Anthony Stazicker, and Kev Godlington — are part of a high-speed expedition led by the Austrian guiding company Furtenbach Adventures. They reached the summit (8,846.86m) just after 7am Nepali time on Wednesday, according to the expedition organiser.
This expedition is the first commercial ascent to use xenon gas in pre-expedition treatments. The four climbers underwent treatment before leaving the UK — a method believed to accelerate red blood cell production and reducing the need for traditional weeks-long acclimatisation.
• Veterans minister aims for record-breaking Everest climb
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