Himalayan News Service

Kathmandu, April 4:

A one-armed Australian mountaineer and his climbing partner plan to play catch-the-boomerang on the summit of Mount Everest if they reach the summit in a climb next month, an AFP report said today.

Paul Hockey and Duncan Chessell were among a team of over 20 climbers who left Kathmandu today to climb Everest along its northeast ridge, the report said.

Chessell reached the top of Everest in 2001 during which fellow Australian March Auricht died.

Hockey, who lost his arm to bone cancer when he was just three weeks old, turned back 300 metres short of the 8,850-metre summit in another attempt last year. The 39-year-old said he had trained much harder this year. If they make the summit, Chessell and Hockey will attempt to throw and catch a boomerang, although they said they were yet to decide who would do the throwing and who would do the catching.