Anni Penttilä

Anni Katri Penttilä (born 22 April 1993, Mikkeli, Finland) is a Finnish mountaineer from Helsinki, who works as a digital marketing entrepreneur and a tour guide in Tanzania and Nepal.

Mountaineering career Penttilä became interested in mountain hiking and climbing at the age of 16 in 2009, when she read an article about the Annapurna Circuit hiking trail in National Geographic. She was able to hike there in 2013. “The place was just as wonderful as I had imagined. We were at an altitude of 5.5 kilometers, with snow-covered mountains all around. I was immediately hooked.” She became the 19th Finn and the youngest Finnish woman to have summitted Everest.

By May 2026, Penttilä has managed to climb seven eight-thousanders in Nepal and India. Her goal is to climb all 14 eight-thousanders in the future. In the summer of 2025, she planned to climb K2 in Pakistan, i.e. Godwin Austen (8 611 m), and the nearby Broad Peak (8 051 m), both of which are located in the Karakorum Range.

While preparing for her climbs, Penttilä has also experienced adversity. She broke her humerus in a gym accident in March 2017. Almost at the same time, her knee required surgery. After that, Penttilä had to move around in a wheelchair, and she wondered if the dream of conquering Everest should be abandoned. However, some six months later she managed to conquer Kilimanjaro. While in the mountains, she has managed to avoid problems, apart from occasional symptoms of mountain sickness.

Penttilä has told about her experiences in the mountains as follows:

Data on Penttilä’s climbs Anni Penttilä — eight-thousanders No. Date Mountain Height References 1. 24 May 2021 Mount Everest, Nepal 8 848 metres 2. 21 September 2023 Manaslu, Nepal 8 163 metres 3. 20 May 2024 Lhotse, Nepal 8 516 metres 4. 6 October 2024 Cho Oyu, Nepal 8 188 metres 5. 7 April 2025 Annapurna I, Nepal 8 091 metres 6. 24 April 2026 Makālu, Nepal 8 462 metres 7. 23 May 2026 Kangchenjunga, Nepal/India 8 586 metres 8. 30 June 2026 Nanga Parbat, Pakistan 8 125 metres

She has said that it was not difficult to find people to interview for her research.