Hari Budha Magar finished on Vinson on 6 January 2026, the first double above-knee amputee to climb a highest peak on every continent. His European summit was Mont Blanc, because the war in Ukraine put Elbrus out of reach, and Guinness accepted the swap. Both 7 summits lists count Elbrus, so on those he has six of the seven.
Hari Budha Magar stood on top of Vinson on 6 January 2026 and became the first double above-knee amputee to climb a highest peak on every continent. Guinness World Records lists him as the first double amputee to climb the 7 summits. His European peak was Mont Blanc, and that one choice is the difference between his record and the two lists this site keeps.
A Gurkha who started climbing after Afghanistan
He was born in 1979 in Rolpa, in the hills of western Nepal, and joined the Royal Gurkha Rifles at 19. In 2010 an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan took both his legs above the knee. His first mountain afterwards was Mera Peak in Nepal, in 2017.
Mont Blanc came in August 2019, then Kilimanjaro in January 2020. On 19 May 2023 he reached the top of Everest, the first double above-knee amputee to do so, a record Guinness also recognised. Denali followed in June 2024, Aconcagua in February 2025 and Carstensz Pyramid in October 2025. Vinson closed the set.
Why Mont Blanc, and not Elbrus
The plan to climb all seven took shape only after Everest. By then Elbrus, in Russia, was out of reach for him because of the war in Ukraine. Mont Blanc, the highest point of the Alps, took its place, and Guinness accepted the swap on account of those circumstances.
The swap has a long history behind it. Where Europe ends is a matter of convention, and a line drawn west of the Caucasus makes Mont Blanc the continent's highest point. Both 7 summits lists follow the more common convention, which places Elbrus, at 5,642 m18,510 ft, in Europe.
Two lists, and Elbrus is on both
This site keeps the two lists the 7 summits are counted on. Dick Bass's version takes Kosciuszko for Oceania, Reinhold Messner's takes Carstensz Pyramid, and both take Elbrus for Europe. The post on the two lists, and why both count explains how that came about.
In our finishers record Hari Budha Magar has six of the seven on the Messner version, each with its date known to the day. Elbrus is the summit still open, and climbing it would complete the Messner list for him. The record he holds with Guinness stands as it is either way.
Elbrus this week
Elbrus was in the news itself this week: Russian authorities are weighing a climbing fee many times the current one. The Elbrus guide covers the routes and the seasons.
This story is part of This week on the 7 summits: 2–8 November 2026, the week's news in brief.