An 80-year-old Japanese mountain climber who has had four heart surgeries reached the top of Mount Everest on Thursday (May 23), becoming the oldest person to conquer the world's highest mountain.

Yuichiro Miura, who took the standard southeast ridge route pioneered by Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay 60 years ago, reached the top of the 8,848 metre (29,028 feet) mountain at roughly 0900 local time (0300 GMT).

He was accompanied by three others, including his son Gota, and six Nepali sherpas.

Miura, who first climbed Everest in 2003 and repeated the feat five years later, takes the oldest climber record from Nepal's Min Bahadur Sherchan, who reached the summit at the age of 76 in 2008.

A noted adventurer, Miura skied down Everest from the South Col in 1970, a feat that became the subject of a documentary.

He has since skied down the highest mountains on each of the seven continents, following the tradition of his late father Keizo, who skied down Europe's Mont Blanc at the age of 99.

He trained for the Everest climb by hiking in Tokyo with weighted packs and working out on a treadmill in a special low-oxygen room in his home.

But Miura's record may only be his to savour briefly. Nepal's Min Bahadur Sherchan, now 81, plans to start climbing the peak this coming weekend.

Presented by Adam Justice