KATHMAMDU: Two Czech mountaineers have successfully summited Kangchung Tse (7,678m) in alpine style, completing the ascent without Sherpa climbing support, IAM Trekking and Expeditions announced on Wednesday, capping a bittersweet season on the peak that claimed the life of a teammate just days earlier.

Martin Ksandr and Petr Kadanka reached the summit on the morning of May 13. The feat was confirmed by expedition guide Nima Geljen Sherpa.

"Congratulations to the alpine style team on the successful summit of Kangchung Tse this morning," said Pemba Jangbu Sherpa, CEO of IAM Trekking and Expeditions Pvt Ltd.

The summit comes after tragedy struck the same expedition earlier this month. Fellow Czech team member David Roubinek, 38, died on May 4 after suffering high altitude pulmonary edema while descending from around 7,400m, breathing his last at approximately 7,200m below Camp III. A five-member rescue team coordinated by Mingma Sherpa, chairman of Seven Summit Treks, subsequently recovered his body from 7,300m to the high camp at 6,100m on May 10, despite difficult weather conditions.

The seven-member expedition, led by Lukas Madr and also including Jana Vankova of Slovakia and Josef Vojtech and Marek Blahuta of the Czech Republic, had set out to scale the 7,678m peak in alpine style. Ksandr and Kadanka's summit on Wednesday marks the team's ultimate — if hard-won — achievement on the mountain.

Kangchung Tse, technically a subsidiary summit of the Makalu massif in Sankhuwasabha district, sees very rare traffic, adding to its appeal for climbers seeking routes beyond the established high-altitude circuits.

The expeditions were organised by IAM Trekking and Expeditions.