Saudi woman who reached the world's rooftop

To come down as an accidental role model . . .

The BBC produced a show on 18 May 2013 on the story of this extraordinary young Saudi woman who reached the world's rooftop with a team of young middle eastern people.  

A Saudi woman has made history by reaching the summit of the world's highest mountain.  Raha Moharrak, 25, not only became the first Saudi woman to attempt the climb but also the youngest Arab to make it to the top of Everest. She is part of a four-person expedition that also includes the first Qatari man and the first Palestinian man attempting to reach the summit.

They are trying to raise $1m (£660,000) for education projects in Nepal.  Originally from Jeddah, Ms Moharrak is a university graduate currently based in Dubai.

Coming from Saudi Arabia - a conservative Muslim country where women's rights are very restricted - she had to break a lot of barriers to achieve her goal, her climb team said.

A biography on the expedition website said convincing Ms Moharrak's family to agree to her climb "was as great a challenge as the mountain itself", though they fully support her now.

"I really don't care about being the first," she is quoted as saying. "So long as it inspires someone else to be second."

Gulf Business on 12  June 2016, published this article on its interview with Raha;  excerpts of it are reproduced here.  

In conversation with Saudi adventurer Raha Moharrak

The authors of Game Changers speak to Raha Moharrak, the youngest Arab and the first Saudi woman to conquer Mount Everest

By David B. Jones, Sophie Le Ray and Radhika Punshi

Having been a curious child, Raha Moharrak always dreamed of having challenging adventures and seeing the world. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in visual communications from the American University of Sharjah and started her career at a leading advertising agency. However, Raha’s life changed the day she climbed Mount Kilimanjaro and challenged herself, her society and culture. It was this adventure that drove her to climb eight more summits, and eventually Mount Everest. On May 18, 2013, Raha made history by becoming the first Saudi woman to summit Mount Everest, a feat that turned her into an accidental role model.

Read more the whole story on Gulf Business