Two Stellenbosch residents recently took up the challenge to climb Mount Everest with a shared Christian mission and years of preparation.

According to Casper Steenkamp and Kempen Claassens of the Kingdom DNA ministry, the journey to Everest started years ago when the Lord put it on their hearts to summit mountains.

“Mountains have always been significant in the Bible and the cities around these mountains are ones who are the most resistant, really powerhouses of resistance against Christianity,” Steenkamp explains.

Their expedition ended in a summit for Claassens, an act of sacrifice by Steenkamp, and a renewed commitment to serving communities around the world.

Best for the challenge

Before Everest the pair took on Mount Kilimanjaro as well as the highest peak in Russia in 2024. Last year the two completed a trek up Mount Aconcagua, the highest peak of South America, and the highest peak of North America located in Alaska, ultimately completing the Seven Summits.

“The best training for mountaineers would be long distance, endurance training. Folks who take on the Comrades or the like, and add strength training would be the best to take on the challenge,” Claassens explains.

The Everest expedition grew out of a partnership forged not only in the mountains but also on a tennis court.

The pair hold the Guinness World Record for the most consecutive doubles tennis matches: 35 matches played over in March 2023.

This year, from 6 to 8 March, Steenkamp and Claassens played a total of 50 doubles matches in 51 hours on the Stellenbosch tennis courts, hoping to break his own world record for the most consecutive doubles tennis matches.

These tennis record attempts, like the Everest trek, was all in aid of raising funds for Kingdom DNA’s global missions.

ALSO READ: Twee langasems 51 uur lank met God op tennisbaan vir rekord, nodige fondse

Thus, Everest wasn’t merely a personal challenge. Their guiding scripture was Matthew 24:14: “And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”

No guarantee

After days up and down between base camp, camp one, two and three to acclimatise the pair were ready to get to the peak. Even with preparation and support, the summit was never guaranteed.

The weather conditions create a narrow window, typically only two to three weeks in May, and that climbers must wait for specific safe conditions. They said hundreds of people may attempt the summit within that short period.

For Steenkamp his journey ended lower down near camp three, at approximately 6 900 m up. “God spoke to me in that moment. He told me that summiting to the top was not to be. After all the preparations, after all the days of reaching this point, and knowing I was only 38 hours away from the summit of Everest, God told me to not go any further,” he explains.

Claassens was about an hour ahead of Steenkamp, not knowing his fellow climber had made the choice to continue.

Steenkamp’s sherpa could not understand his refusal to continue despite being physically up for the climb. “There I was in tears, praying to God and listening to his will telling me it was not meant to be. It was unprecedented and my sherpa didn’t understand at all… he had to call back to head office asking for permission and trying to figure out the logistics of getting back to base camp, while my sherpa would go ahead with Kempen.”

This decision meant Steenkamp now had additional support and oxygen bottles.

Claassens only heard of Steenkamp’s decision when his friends’ sherpa reached him but he forged ahead.

Frozen closed

On Saturday 18 May at 05:05 Claassens began the final approach in the darkness, in howling winds and with temperatures below freezing.

“Over the years we have climbed mountains for spiritual reasons, and to highlight what God is doing in those regions [of each mountain we climbed]. And that is why I could pray on Everest, knowing that all the months of fasting and praying for these regions, countries and lost souls come together and that moment belonged to Jesus. You don’t have much time at the top, but I prayed and could just say thank you Lord,” Claassens says.

On the way down he released all his water, equipment and even his right eye had frozen closed. Again Claassens called on his faith and prayed for healing. By the time he had reached camp two his eye had fortunately “defrosted”, he recalls.

After the summit the pair made their way back home together and landed back in South Africa on 26 June.

In Steenkamp’s case he believes the climb was a test of his obedience to his maker.In honour of the challenge Kingdom DNA is hosting the launch of a documentary series on their trek on Saturday 1 August at the Silo and Shed in Devon Valley.