The body covered with flowers and khadas, has been put in the monastery to perform the last rituals according to traditions. Hundreds of people lined up to pay their last respects to the fallen hero. Babu Chhiri was named in the Guinness Book of Records for having climbed Mount Everest in the fastest time, last year, he sprinted to the summit from the base camp in just 16 hours and 56 minutes. He shattered the previous record set by Kaji Sherpa in 1998, who climbed the mountain in 20 hours and 24 minutes. Most climbers take two to four days to cover the distance from the base camp to the summit.
Most climbers typically remain at the peak just long enough to have their photo taken.
Babu Chhiri got his first taste of mountaineering when he was 13 and worked as a base camp porter for the experienced Sherpas who guide foreigners all the way up the forbidding summit. In 1989, he successfully led a Russian team up Kanchenjunga, the world's third-highest peak. A year later, he conquered Everest and had since reached the summit 10 times. In 1995, he became the only man to reach the peak twice in 14 days. Family members said the body will be kept at the monastery for two days for the public to pay their last respect and conduct the rituals.