The first man to climb Everest twice, died peacefully at 8:45am on the 24th April at his home in Darjeeling.

One of the most famous and legendary Sherpas, Nawang Gombu was born in Tibet and studied at the Rongbuk Monastery beneath the north side of Everest before fleeing to Nepal and then eventually to Darjeeling in India.

He was a nephew of the great Tenzing Norgay and took part in the successful 1953 Everest expedition, carrying twice to the South Col. Although his exact date of birth is not certain, he was one of the youngest, if not the youngest Sherpa on the expedition.

Ten years later Norman Dyhrenfurth chose Nawang and Jim Whittaker as the summit party for the first American ascent of Everest, and in 1965 Nawang returned to the mountain as part of MS Kohli's Indian expedition, and again climbed to the summit via the South East Ridge, this time with Autar Singh Cheema.

In 1964 he made the second ascent of Nanda Devi as part of an Indian expedition.

When the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute in Darjeeling was inaugurated in 1954, Nawang joined as an instructor. Tenzing became Director, a post that Nawang would hold after his uncle death in 1986.

During the last five decades he had trained hundreds of Indian mountaineers and run many rock climbing courses, particularly in the hills around Mumbai.

Before his death he was one of only two living recipients of the prestigious Tiger Badge, an award presented on very rare occasions by the Himalayan Club, to Sherpas who achieved outstanding success in the mountains.

In 1953 he was awarded a Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal, in 1963 the Hubbard Medal from the National Geographic Society, and in 1967 an Olympic Gold Medal.

He was also an honorary member of the Alpine Club, the American Alpine Club, and the Himalayan Club.
 

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