Sri Lankan duo seek funds to Mount Everest

Johann Peries and Jayanthi Karu-Utumpala – Pic by Sameera Wijesinghe

By Shiran Illanperuma

Johan Peiries and Jayanthi Karu-Utumpala will be the first Sri Lankans to join the exclusive list of climbers who have reached the summit of Mt. Everest if their expedition next month is successful.

However, the duo is facing a shortage of funds for their expedition.

With sponsorship from SriLankan Airlines, Mobitel, Sri Lanka Telecom, SEALs and others, Peiries and Karu-Utumpala have so far drummed up Rs. 10 million.

However, the duo require a further Rs. 10 million to meet the Rs. 19 million cost required to fund their expedition with International Mountain Guides (IMG) – a Swiss company who have organised expeditions to the top of the perilous peak over the last 30 years.

Peries said that IMG had extended the cut-off date for payment by three months upon seeing the financial struggle of the duo.

Peries said: “We decided to go with IMG after a lot of research because they are one of the most experienced companies that organise the paths to Everest every season. They’re not the cheapest but one of the most reliable and take your interest to heart.”

Peries and Karu-Utumpala say that they are in talks with the Ministry of Sports to procure further funding.

The expedition will begin in April and is expected to take a month. Peries and Karu-Utumpala have elected to approach the mammoth mountain from its southern face, through Nepal, for safety reasons and its familiarity to climbers.

Peiries and Karu-Utumpala are both seasoned mountaineers who have previously triumphed over Mt. Kilimanjaro and Island Peak together.

The climbing duo first visited the Everest base camp in 2010. “At first glimpse of Everest it really did something to me and gave me the desire to go further but it was only a dream,” said Peries.