Two days of snow at the weekend destroyed some of the roped paths and camps but by Wednesday, the penultimate camp at 7,790 metres was renovated and the climbers braced for the final push.

The official Xinhua news agency jumped the gun on the time the torch was lit, but it was lit several minutes later. China has recorded the summit's height as 8,844.43 metres, four metres shy of the widely accepted height.