Shanti Rai from Sikkim has been awarded a gold medal by the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF) for her contribution to climbing and adventure sports.

The highest honour in the field of mountaineering was conferred on Rai at a programme held at the IMF headquarters in New Delhi on November 23.

“Since 2011, I have been into mountaineering and actively participating in adventure sports. The prestigious award will inspire me to go further,” Rai, a resident of Chemchey in Namchi district, told The Telegraph over the phone from Delhi on Monday.

In 2022, Rai became the first person from Sikkim to be elected as a lifetime member of the IMF.

The 39-year-old summitted Mt Ama Dablam (6,812 metres) in Nepal in January 2021. In August this year, she led an All-Women Climbathon at Bara Shigri Glacier in Himachal Pradesh.

Rai has also participated in various mountain biking events. She took part in the 3,500km-long mountain cycling in the Western Ghats, organised by the Women Adventure Network in 2012.

“I also led an 11-member team that scaled the 7,077m-high Kun Peak in Kargil. The expedition was organised by the Chhattisgarh government in collaboration with the IMF in August 2022,” the climber said.

The IMF, which was established in 1957, introduced the gold medal for mountaineers in 1961. Many stalwarts, including Tenzing Norgey, Dorjee Lhatto, Nawang Gombu and Bachendri Pal, are the recipients of the medal.

Rai is currently an instructor at the Centre for Adventure & Eco-Tourism in Chemchey.

Kazi Sherpa, principal of the centre, said she had been recognised for her long association with and contribution to the climbing and adventure sports.