Everest Paragliding and Kayaking Pair Selected as National Geographic Adventurers of the Year

National Geographic and Glenfiddich Single Malt Honor Nepali Adventure Pioneers Lakpa Tsheri Sherpa and Sano Babu Sunuwar

WASHINGTON, Feb. 28, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Everest guide Lakpa Tsheri Sherpa and extreme kayaker Sano Babu Sunuwar were named the People's Choice Adventurers of the Year for 2012 for their climb to Everest's summit, record-setting paragliding descent and long-distance kayak from Nepal to the Bay of Bengal in India. The two Nepali adventurers were selected from a group of 12 individuals whose extraordinary achievements in exploration, conservation and adventure sports distinguished them in the past year. The final selection was determined through online voting on the National Geographic Adventure website www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure.

The winning duo was chosen for its epic three-month adventure called "The Ultimate Descent," which included an ascent of Everest (a first for kayaker Babu, but the fourth for mountain guide Lakpa), an 8,865-meter (29,084-foot) free-flight paraglide descent from the summit (which set a world record for free flight) and an 850-km (approximately 528-mile) kayak trip from Nepal to India on the Ganges River to the Bay of Bengal. Along the way, Babu, 28, and Lakpa, 39, faced obstacles ranging from extreme temperatures and oxygen deprivation at the summit to massive whirlpools on the Kosi River's class V rapids to being held up at knifepoint in India.

"We weren't after a record, we just wanted to do all these things, climbing, paragliding, kayaking, in one continuous trip," said Lakpa. When asked about his favorite part of the trip, Babu said, "Taking off from the highest point in the world."

"We believe that Lakpa and Babu exemplify the spirit of the award in their commitment to adventure in the truest sense of the word," said Mary Anne Potts, editor of National Geographic Adventure. "Our fans — more than 72,000 across the adventure community — voted overwhelmingly for these two incredible athletes, and we're thrilled to call them the People's Choice Adventurers of the Year."

For a gallery of pictures and a video of the winners, go to http://adventure.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/adventurers-of-the-year/2012/peoples-choice-lakpa-tsheri-sherpa-sano-babu-sunuwar/.

National Geographic has named Adventurers of the Year for the past seven years. In 2011-2012, the exclusive partnership with Glenfiddich Single Malt brought another layer of excitement to the award.

"We are delighted to partner with National Geographic on this exciting program," said Lindsay Prociw, senior brand manager for Glenfiddich. "Both Glenfiddich and National Geographic are pioneers within their industries, and, as we gear up to celebrate our respective 125th anniversaries, we are honored to be able to celebrate and reward those who are keeping the spirit of a pioneer alive. We salute Lakpa and Babu on this award as well as on their pioneering achievement, and are proud to be honoring them for it."

The feats of each of this year's nominees embody pioneering innovation — from reinventing distance hiking and circumnavigating frigid Ellesmere Island to skiing the Andes on human power and launching a backyard micro adventure movement. The other nominees were:

• Jennifer Pharr Davis — American hiker
• Alastair Humphreys — British adventurer
• Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner — Austrian mountaineer
• Danny MacAskill — Scottish cyclist
• Carissa Moore — American surfer
• Travis Rice — American snowboarder
• Cory Richards — American mountaineer-photographer
• Jon Turk and Erik Boomer — American kayakers
• Nick Waggoner — American skier-filmmaker

SOURCE National Geographic Society