This Dubai woman is scaling highest peaks, breaking barriers

Mountaineer and Dubai resident Naila Kiani scaled Makalu, the world’s fifth highest peak at 8.485 metres, on Sunday. The remarkable accomplishment makes her the first Pakistani woman to conquer 11 of the world’s 14 highest mountains – all 8,000-plus metres in height.

In her nine years in Dubai, Kiani has spent the last three years mountaineering.

Kiani, who has two young children, found the ideal environment and resources in the city to pursue her passion to climb the world's highest peaks.

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Kiani's latest feat did not come easy, The final summit push of Makalu took place the entire Saturday night before she reached the top on Sunday morning. The descent continued all of Sunday through a snowstorm.

The team faced an unfortunate turn of events when got lost on their way back due to the adverse weather conditions, unable to locate ‘camp 3’ that sits at around 7,500m.

Eventually, around 7 pm Nepal time, the team located the camp where they took refuge.

Significantly, Kiani holds the record of being ithe fastest-ever Pakistani in history, in both the men’s and women’s categorym to climb 11 of the 14 highest 8,000-metre peaks, which she has done in just under 3 years.

In recognition of her exceptional achievements, Kiani has recently been honoured with the Sitara-i-Imtiaz, the highest civilian honour bestowed upon any female athlete in Pakistan.

In 2023, Kiani captured global attention by scaling 7 out of 14 of the world’s 8,000-metre peaks in six months, an achievement made by only 10 mountaineers globally in the same year.

Kiani is also a competitive boxer.

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