Xia Boyu: The Chinese Hero Who Climbed Mount Qomolangma Without Legs

This book not only covers the essence of the author’s more than 20 years of self-control research but also includes the main research results in the field of global self-control in the past few decades， introduces the scientific principles behind self-control in detail， and provides scientific and effective self-control improvement strategies and a large number of vivid and interesting self-control improvement cases. This book is an easy-to-understand book for people who want to learn about self-control， and improve self-control.

Zheng Yuhuang

Zheng Yuhuang， is currently a doctoral supervisor at Tsinghua University and a judge of the World Marketing Hall of Fame in China.

Zhang Mingming

Zhang Mingming， is a postdoctoral fellow at the Beijing Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. at Macau University of Science and Technology， and once attended Stanford University for exchange study. He has published several articles， mainly focusing on research of consumer psychology and the influencing factors in the consumer purchase process.

Decoding Self-Control: The Secret to Success and Happiness in Life

Written by Zheng Yuhuang， Zhang Mingming

China Machine Press

July 2024

79.00 (CNY)

In April 2021， I was invited to lead a group of entrepreneur students to Dunhuang for the 9th Xuanzang’s Journey to the West Gobi Desert Trekking Challenge， where I also delivered a speech at the opening ceremony. One of the key figures who attracted me to speak at the event was Xia Boyu. Sharing the stage with Xia Boyu was an honor for me.

If you don’t know who Xia Boyu is， let me tell you: Xia Boyu is the first Chinese double amputee to summit Mount Qomolangma. This incredible achievement made him a “Chinese Hero” who moved the nation， earning him the 2019 Laureus World Sports Award for “Best Sporting Moment of the Year.” He was also included in the 2020 edition of the Guinness World Records.

When I first learned about Xia Boyu’s story， I was filled with immense admiration. This admiration was deeply personal， as it related to my own knee injury. Since injuring my knee in 2015 and undergoing surgery， I have been unable to climb stairs. Therefore， whenever I have to board a plane at a remote stand requiring stair climbing， I must request airport wheelchair service and use a special lift to get on the plane.

At that time， I was eager to hear Xia Boyu’s speech in person. How did Xia Boyu lose his legs? After losing his legs， how did he manage to persevere for decades and ultimately reach the summit of Mount Qomolangma at the age of 69?

Xia Boyu was born in Chongqing in 1949， the same year as the founding of the People’s Republic of China. The character “Yu” in his name represents his birthplace. In 1956， Xia Boyu moved to Qinghai with his parents. As a child， Xia Boyu loved sports， especially soccer. However， due to fierce competition， he was unable to join a professional soccer team. In 1974， when the Chinese Mountaineering Team came to Qinghai to select members for an expedition to Mount Qomolangma， Xia Boyu decided to try his luck and unexpectedly succeeded.

After just one year of training， Xia Boyu attempted to climb Mount Qomolangma for the first time in 1975. He was accompanied by other members of the Chinese Mountaineering Team. However， during the ascent， they encountered strong high-altitude winds， forcing them to abandon the summit attempt and begin their descent. On the night they descended to an altitude of 7，600 meters， one of his teammates accidentally lost his sleeping bag. At that moment， the compassionate Xia Boyu decided to give his sleeping bag to the teammate who had lost his， while he spent the night fully clothed without one. Unfortunately， the sub-zero temperatures caused severe frostbite to Xia Boyu’s legs， eventually leading to the amputation of both his lower legs. After the amputation， Xia Boyu fell into a long period of depression. After all， facing the prospect of spending the rest of his life in a wheelchair， it was hard for anyone not to feel self-pity， especially for an athlete who had aspired to climb Mount Qomolangma. Fortunately， one day， a foreign doctor told Xia Boyu that even with both legs amputated， it was possible to use prosthetics. With prosthetics， many people could walk and climb mountains， and even reaching the summit of Qomolangma was possible.

This statement reignited the fire of life within Xia Boyu. From then on， he had a new goal. After getting prosthetics， Xia Boyu no longer wallowed in self-pity. Instead， he began diligently working on his physical rehabilitation. During training， the point where his legs met the prosthetics would often be rubbed raw and bleed profusely， but he persevered.

In 1993， tragedy struck Xia Boyu once again. Due to constant swelling and severe bleeding where his legs met the prosthetics， Xia Boyu had to undergo another amputation. This time， it triggered lymphatic cancer. Incredibly， after surgery， Xia Boyu continued his rehabilitation with unwavering determination， all for that distant dream–to climb Mount Qomolangma once again. Yes， it was the first attempt to summit Qomolangma that cost him his legs， so Xia Boyu never forgot his goal: even without legs， he would attempt to climb Qomolangma again.

In July 2011， at the World Rock Climbing Championship in Italy， the 62-year-old Xia Boyu overcame unimaginable challenges and ultimately won two world championships in the men’s difficulty and speed events in the double amputee category. This achievement gave Xia Boyu immense confidence to continue his pursuit of summiting Qomolangma.

In 2014， at the age of 65， Xia Boyu finally returned to the base of Mount Qomolangma for the second time， nearly 40 years after his first attempt. Among his teammates from back then， he was the only one at this age still determined to climb Qomolangma. However， when he reached Qomolangma Base Camp， an avalanche struck. He had no choice but to abandon the attempt and return empty-handed. In 2015， a year later， Xia Boyu challenged Qomolangma for the third time. But just as he was preparing to climb， Nepal was struck by a once-in-a-century earthquake with a magnitude of 8.1， forcing him to abandon his attempt once more.

In 2016， Xia Boyu made his fourth attempt to summit Qomolangma. This was his closest to success， with only 94 meters left to the summit. Just one final push， and he would have realized his dream. However， nature had other plans–a sudden blizzard struck. Xia Boyu naturally wanted to continue climbing to achieve his dream， but doing so in the face of the blizzard could have cost him and others their lives， especially the young Nepalese Sherpas helping him， who were only in their twenties. In the end， Xia Boyu made the most difficult decision of his life–to turn back.

After returning， Xia Boyu developed thrombosis in his legs， and the doctors told him that he could no longer climb mountains. However， Xia Boyu was not content with this; the regret of being just 94 meters away from the summit lingered in his heart. So， he continued to train diligently every day， just to get one step closer to his dream.

On May 14， 2018， at 10:40 a.m， the 69-year-old Xia Boyu made his fifth attempt to climb Mount Qomolangma， and this time he succeeded. He became the first Chinese double amputee to reach the summit of Qomolangma. This was the happiest moment of his life as he finally realized his dream. But when Xia Boyu called his wife from the summit of Qomolangma， he cried. Yes， perhaps only his family knew what Xia Boyu had sacrificed to achieve his dream of summiting Qomolangma. Of course， his family had also made enormous sacrifices for his dream.

As I listened to Xia Boyu’s speech in Dunhuang， I couldn’t help but cry， and so did the hundreds of entrepreneurs present. After returning to Beijing， Xia Boyu and I became good friends， and I invited him to speak several times. I highly recommend that everyone seize the opportunity to hear Xia Boyu’s speech in person if possible， read Xia Boyu’s autobiography， Endless Climbing， and watch the documentary film of the same name.

In December 2021， when Xia Boyu’s documentary Endless Climbing was released in theaters nationwide， I organized a private screening event. At that time， many entrepreneurs， students， and their families were deeply moved by the film at the Legend Cinema in Beijing’s Blue Harbor. The surprise before the movie even started made everyone excited–Xia Boyu himself came to meet and address us.

For most of us， even with healthy legs， climbing Mount Qomolangma might seem impossible. But Xia Boyu， who lost his legs， managed to summit Qomolangma at the age of 69， realizing his dream. How did he do it? The answer lies in his extraordinary self-control. It was this incredible self-control that enabled him to stick to his daily training regimen for forty years. Every pull-up， every push-up， every sit-up was a step closer to his dream. During a meal and conversation， Xia Boyu told me that， even now in his seventies， he still exercises every day and can easily do over 200 push-ups in one go.

After successfully reaching the summit of Qomolangma， Xia Boyu received countless honors and invitations. Most people， in the face of such victory， might become a little prideful and start to enjoy the fruits of their success. However， Xia Boyu continued to strive. He set new goals and plans for himself， aiming to climb more peaks， with a goal of summiting the highest peaks on each continent every year.

In 2020，Xia Boyu initiated a domestic project called the “Hundred Cities， Thousand Mountains” campaign， encouraging people to get out of their homes and engage in physical activity. The opportunity I had to listen to Xia Boyu’s speech in Dunhuang， along with hundreds of other entrepreneurs， was thanks to his generous spirit.

After hearing Xia Boyu’s speech in Dunhuang and sharing the stage with him， his spirit has continually inspired me to keep striving. Compared to Xia Boyu’s leg amputations， my knee injury seems trivial. Encouraged by him， in addition to sticking to my weekly rehabilitation exercises， I also started to try riding a bicycle again. In April 2022， seven years after my knee injury， I finally regained the ability to ride freely. I bought a “racing bike” to reward myself. Now， I can cycle from Tsinghua University， outside Beijing’s Fourth Ring Road， to the alleys inside the Second Ring Road， a round trip of over 20 kilometers. The joy I felt made me feel young again.

In 2023， Xia Boyu restarted his plan to climb the highest peaks on each continent. In September 2023， I planned to hold a year-end seminar and invited Xia Boyu to speak to the entrepreneurs. When I contacted him， I didn’t expect him to reply， “From December 26 to January 7， I’ll be climbing Kilimanjaro in Africa.” Although I couldn’t invite him this time， my admiration for Xia Boyu only deepened. At the age of 74， Xia Boyu could easily live a comfortable life of fame and success， yet he continues to pursue new heights. On January 1， 2024， Xia Boyu successfully reached the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro， the highest peak in Africa!

Let us all draw inspiration from the spirit of Xia Boyu!