China's 1st all-women expedition to Mount Qomolangma kicks off

File photo of an expedition team to Mount Qomolangma. Four members of the first ever private Chinese women expedition to Mount Everest (Qomolangma) kicked off Tuesday morning to fulfill their dream of conquering the world's highest peak from the south. [Photo/ China News Service]

The four members of the first ever private Chinese women expedition to Mount Qomolangma left this capital city Tuesday morning to fulfill their dream of conquering the world's highest peak from the south.

Ma Liyamu, the team leader, is a Muslim woman from Xinjiang, which is located in the northwest of China. She started doing outdoor sports in 1996, and if she successfully reaches Everest's 8,848-metre-high peak, she will be the first woman from her region and community to achieve such a feat.

"In the past, women from my community were subjected to a lot of pressure but things in the Muslim tradition have changed, and I am receiving a lot of support and encouragement from my community, " Ma Liyamu told Xinhua on the eve of their departure.

Ma Liyamu organized the expedition following the death of a fellow climber who was murdered last year by Taliban gunmen at the Base Camp of Nanga Parbat, Pakistan's second highest peak.

"He was a very good friend and we decided to organize this first Chinese women expedition to the world's highest peak in his honor," Yong Liu, who has been "coaching" the female-only group both physically and mentally, said.

For the expedition team, making it to the summit of Mount Everest is less important than proving that a common dream and a lot of teamwork can surmount differences in skills, experience and ethnicity.

Tsang Yin Hung, a teacher from Hong Kong, set up the challenging vision of climbing Mount Everest with 400 of her students four years ago.

"This was my way of showing my students that you can actually turn your dreams into reality. At the beginning I thought I was the one supporting them, but now I realized that they are actually the ones supporting me," the 39-year-old teacher told Xinhua.

The group also wants to dispel the notion that adventure sports should be closed to certain groups. According to Wang Chu Han, Everest does not care if you are a man or a woman.

"I grew up in Yunnan, surrounded by mountains, and I am confident about my capabilities," the 39-year-old climber and third member of the Chinese women expedition team, said.

Wang said that she decided to embark on this journey after she dreamt of dancing on the roof of the world one night.

Everest remains the world's highest glass ceiling. Although more women want to conquer the summit every year, they still only represent one-seventh of the climbers who venture above Base Camp.

According to Zheng Yu, 43, the fourth female member of the expedition, the highest barrier to the summit however, is not gender, but money.

"I have been saving money for this expedition since 2007 and I had to struggle along the way," she confided.

She added that her parents are unaware of her attempt of climbing Mount Everest.

"My dad came with me to the airport but I haven't told him the real reason behind my trip to Nepal since I do not want my parents to worry about me," Zheng Yu said, romantically adding that reaching the summit is less important than appreciating the journey.

On behalf of the Nepal government, Madhu Sudan Burlakoti, joint secretary of Nepal's Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, wished the all-women Chinese team good luck.

He said that at the opening of the spring climbing season last year, 329 permits for Mount Everest were issued but as of Tuesday, 334 permits have already been issued and more permits are expected to be issued in the coming days.

According to the secretary, the permits issued would generate more than $3.32 million in the form of royalties for the landlocked Himalayan nation.