Cheruiyot Kirui’s parents open up on last conversation with him before Mt. Everest expedition

Parents of the late mountaineer Joshua Cheruiyot Kirui who tragically died on Wednesday during an expedition on Mt. Everest have spoken about how their son developed interest in the outdoor activity, and the last conversations they had with him.

At their home in Chepterit village, Nandi County, Kirui’s father, Wilson Kenduywo and mother Ruth Kenduywo remembered their son as an avid and talented recreational runner with a passion for heights since childhood.

His mother revealed that ever since he was a toddler, Kirui would be quick to climb the tallest trees in the compound, adding that his lack of fear for heights always gave her chills.

“He started by climbing trees. We had cypress and blue gum trees in our compound, and he would climb to the top. I would get scared for him and would just go in the house since reaching the top seemed so far high up,” Kirui's mother Ruth told the Nation newspaper.

According to his father, Kirui developed a passion with time and when he began climbing different mountains, the family grew confident of his skill and never doubted that their son would soon make headlines.

“It was his hobby, and he felt successful because he had climbed many mountains around the world. I heard he had come from Argentina and went to Mt. Everest. He had climbed nearly all of them, including Mt. Kilimanjaro. That was his work,” said Wilson.

A few weeks before Kirui set off to scale the world’s highest mountain without supplemental oxygen, the family says he informed them of the daring escapade which would put both his name and that of Kenya in history books.

As expected, they mounted their support behind their son just like they always had in his previous endeavors, and were in constant communication as he began to summit Everest.

“Three weeks ago, we talked. He called and asked if I could set up WhatsApp so that we could communicate better,” his father said.

Reports that Kirui’s dream of being the first African to summit Mt. Everest at a height of 8,848.86 meters without supplemental oxygen was cut short came as a shocker to her family which had long believed in his capability and resilience.

His mother says Kirui and his team sent a video while they were only a kilometre away from the summit, leading her panic and while holding her breath.

“They said there was a video from around 800 feet or so, and I was told only one kilometre was left. When he began that last stretch, it was like I was holding my breath, just wanting this climb to end so he could come back alive,” said Ruth.

Nepali mountaineering news website Everest Today would later announce that Kirui’s body had been found just metres away from the peak of Everest, a day after he went missing together with his guide.

His Nepali sherpa identified as Nawang is still missing.