Climbing
A Japanese man recently became the oldest person ever to summit Mt. Fuji at the age of 102. In August, Kokichi Akuzawa broke the previous Guinness World Record while also overcoming recent heart failure, a battle with shingles, and a recent fall in order to complete the climb. On the morning of August 3, Akuzawa began his journey up the famous and imposing Mt. Fuji. Akuzawa is no stranger to mountain climbing; he is honorary chairman of the Gunma Mountaineering Club and has climbed mountains almost weekly, according to a statement from Guinness World Records’ Masakazu Senda. In 2022, to celebrate his 99th birthday, Akuzawa climbed Mount Nabewariyama, a 4,177-foot peak outside Tokyo. Akuzawa had also previously climbed Mt. Fuji at the age of 96.
The record for the oldest climber to summit Mount Fuji has been set several times in the past few decades. Teiichi Igarashi, 99, became the oldest person to summit the mountain in 1986. In 1994, the first centenarian Ichijiro Araya summited the mountain at 100-years-old. Now, Akuzawa has done it at the age of 102 years and 51 days.
Akuzawa was awarded an official Guinness World Records certificate. Following his amazing achievement, Akuzawa was questioned if he planned on climbing Mt. Fuji again in the future. He responded that he has no interest in climbing the mountain again in his lifetime. “If you ask me next year, maybe you’ll get a different answer,” he joked. “But for now, I’m happy with that climb.”
