--- description: Junko Tabei, the first woman to climb Mount Everest, has died at the age of 77 title: The First Woman to Climb Mount Everest Has Died image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc12a8feeab9dd7a4/6988ab28f887dc30eee97e68/junko-tabei.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The First Woman to Climb Mount Everest Has Died by [Mahita Gajanan](/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Oct 23, 2016 3:34 PM CUT  Junko Tabei, the first woman to summit Mount Everest in 1975, receives a gift from a Kathmandu city official during ceremonies in Kathmandu on May 27, 2003. Junko Tabei, the first woman to summit Mount Everest in 1975, receives a gift from a Kathmandu city official during ceremonies in Kathmandu on May 27, 2003.Binod Joshi—AP by [Mahita Gajanan](/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Oct 23, 2016 3:34 PM CUT Junko Tabei, the first woman to climb Mount Everest, has died at the age of 77. Tabei, a mountaineer who reached the summit of the world’s highest peak in 1975, died of cancer on Thursday, according to Japanese public broadcaster [NHK](http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20161022%5F22/ "undefined"). She was 35 when she reached the 29,000 foot summit of Mount Everest. Tabei didn’t stop climbing after Everest, later summiting the highest peaks in more than 70 countries. In 1992, Tabei became the first woman to [scale the tallest mountains](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/junko-tabei-first-woman-to-climb-mount-everest-dies-age-77/ "undefined") on each of the seven continents, including Mount Kilimanjaro and Denali. NHK reports Tabei was diagnosed with cancer four years ago, but continued to climb while undergoing treatment. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4541950/junko-tabei-first-woman-mount-everest-died/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4541950/junko-tabei-first-woman-mount-everest-died/"},"headline":"The First Woman to Climb Mount Everest Has Died","datePublished":"2016-10-23T15:34:08.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T01:21:37.395Z","description":"She was 77","url":"https://time.com/4541950/junko-tabei-first-woman-mount-everest-died/","keywords":["Japan"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc12a8feeab9dd7a4/6988ab28f887dc30eee97e68/junko-tabei.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Mahita Gajanan","jobTitle":"Gajanan is an editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc12a8feeab9dd7a4/6988ab28f887dc30eee97e68/junko-tabei.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Junko Tabei","caption":"FILE - In this May 27, 2003, file photo, Junko Tabei, the first woman to summit Mount Everest in 1975, receives a gift from a Kathmandu city official during ceremonies in Kathmandu, Nepal. Tabei, who died Thursday, Oct. 20, 2016, at 77, devoted her adult","creditText":"Binod Joshi—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4541950/junko-tabei-first-woman-mount-everest-died/","name":"The First Woman to Climb Mount Everest Has Died"}}]}] ```