World's highest skydiving event held in Everest region

The third edition of Everest Skydive, the highest skydive event in the world and by far the most challenging, kicked off on Sunday in the Everest region, Solukhumbu, with internationally renowned skydivers participating in the adventure sport.

Two skydivers, one foreigner and one Nepali, skydiving in tandem from a...
Three foreign skydivers and two Nepalis jumped from a Pilatus plane from the height of 27,000 feet from sea level, landing at Syanboche airstrip (12350 feet) amid the cheer of a crowd of tourism professionals, locals and media persons.

"It was an exciting yet challenging jump," said Wendy Smith, a skydiving world champion from New Zealand, who led the team whose performanceincluded one solo and two tandem jumps. Three experienced foreign skydivers and two Nepali first-timers were involved in the daredevil act.

Smith, a Guinness record holder, was one the three skydivers to jump from an aircraft at a record height of 9000m in the skies above Mount Everest in 2008, free-falling for one minute at speed reaching 290kmph.

On Monday, four foreign skydivers and one Nepali jumped from even higher point (29,500 feet).

Begun on 2008, this aerial adventure takes skydiving into two harsh and extreme environments - high altitude at 29,500ft plus extreme cold. WithMt. Everest and several 8000m peaks lying below, the jumpers leap, freefall for a few seconds, before opening their parachutes.

"Everest Skydive has proved to be a unique tourism product of Nepal andhas good potentials of attracting skydiving enthusiasts from around the world," Suman Pandey, chief executive of Explore Himalaya Travel and Adventure, the organiser of the event, says.

"There are more than 700,000 professional skydivers in the world who would certainly be interested to take the challenge of skydiving from close tothe Mt Everest. This can contribute significantly to the country's tourism industry," he further says. What's lacking, however, is clear law governing this adventure sport, just like trekking and mountaineering, he adds.

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