Tejan Gurung (à ¤¨à ¥Âà ¤ªà ¤¾à ¤²à ¥Â: à ¤¤à ¥Âà ¤Âà ¤¨ à ¤Âà ¥Âà ¤°à ¥Âà ¤Â, born 1995) is a Nepali mountaineer known for his involvement in high-altitude climbing expeditions in the Himalayas. He has participated in multiple international expeditions, working with climbers and expedition teams from different countries. From 2022 to 2024, Gurung has climbed all the 14 eight-thousanders, being mountains above , and was the youngest British person to so.
Born in Pokhara, Nepal, Tejan Gurung moved to the United Kingdom with his family in 2005 following his fatherâÂÂs retirement from the Brigade of Gurkhas. In 2014, at the age of 19, he joined the British Army and served with the Royal Engineers. After completing the All-Arms Commando Course, he was assigned to the 24 Commando Regiment, part of 3 Commando Brigade. Gurung served for six years, during which he developed skills and experience that later influenced his mountaineering career.
Tejan Gurung began his mountaineering career in 2017 with the ascent of Lobuche Peak (6,119 m). He climbed Mount Everest on 27 May 2022 and summited Mount Lhotse the following day, marking his first ascents of 8,000-metre peaks. After leaving the British Army in 2022, he focused full-time on high-altitude mountaineering. In 2023, Gurung completed ascents of eleven 8,000-metre mountains within a single year. These included Annapurna (15 April), Makalu (23 May), Kangchenjunga (1 June), Nanga Parbat (2 July), Gasherbrum II (17 July), Gasherbrum I (21 July), Broad Peak (25 July), K2 (28 July), Manaslu (17 September), Dhaulagiri (29 September), and Cho Oyu (2 October).
On 9 October 2024, Gurung summited Shishapangma (8,027 m) in China, completing the ascent of all fourteen mountains above 8,000 metres.In addition to his Himalayan climbs, Gurung has also ascended mountains outside Nepal, including Mount Elbrus in Russia and Aconcagua in Argentina.
The total time he took to climb the 14 eight-thousanders was 2 years, 4 months, and 13 days.
During the 2023 climbing season on Shishapangma, multiple avalanches on the upper slopes resulted in the deaths of four climbers, including American mountaineer Anna Gutu. Tejan Gurung was present on the mountain at the time and later returned to complete his own summit on 9 October 2024, finishing his 14-peaks project.