Sonam Wangyal


Sonam Wangyal is a former Indian para military personnel and mountaineer who climbed Mt Everest in 1965 at the age 23, making him the youngest summiter,.He was one of the 9 summiters of the first successful Indian Everest Expeditions that climbed Mount Everest on May 1965 led by Captain M S Kohli,,,,.He is the third Indian man and eighteenth man in world that climbed Mount Everest.On May 22 -1965 first time that the Oldest Sonam Gyatso at 42 and the Youngest Sonam Wangyal at 23 climbed Everest together

Honors and Awards

He was honoured with the Padma Shri in 1965, followed by the Arjuna Award in 1965 . He served as the Principal of the Sonam Mountaineering Institute in Gangtok from 1976 to 1990. He retired as Assistant Director of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police in 1993, and now lives in Leh.