A Japanese centenarian has etched his name into the record books after becoming the oldest person to successfully climb Mount Fuji, Japan’s highest peak.
Kokichi Akuzawa, 102, who has battled heart failure and other health complications in recent years, scaled the 3,776-metre (12,388 feet) active volcano in early August. His feat has now been officially recognised by the Guinness World Records.
Born in 1923, the retired livestock farmer from Gunma Prefecture is no stranger to mountain trekking. He previously climbed Mount Fuji at the age of 96, but insisted this latest milestone was nothing extraordinary.
“I am six years older than the last time I climbed,” Akuzawa told AFP. “I have been there and seen the view many times, it wasn’t anything special. I reached the summit last time, too.”
Despite his modesty, Akuzawa’s journey to the peak was not without struggle. Earlier this year, he suffered a fall during one of his regular hikes, then endured a bout of shingles before being hospitalised with heart failure. His family feared his climbing days were over.
But according to his daughter, 75-year-old Yukiko, the elderly hiker stunned his doctors with a remarkable recovery. “The recovery was so fast that his doctors could not believe it,” she said. Determined to return to the mountains, Akuzawa resumed his routine of early morning walks and weekly climbs in preparation for Fuji.
The record-breaking ascent stretched over three days, with overnight stops at mountain huts. At one point, the thin air nearly forced him to abandon the attempt, but with encouragement from his companions—including a granddaughter who is a nurse—he pressed on to the summit.
Beyond hiking, Akuzawa is a volunteer at a local elderly care centre and also teaches painting, proving age has not dulled his zest for life.
Asked if he intends to conquer Mount Fuji once more, the centenarian replied firmly: “No.”
