In what is probably the world's most elevated martial arts school, a judo dojo has been established in Nepal on Mt. Everest. Built by a Japanese non-profit organization in Khumjung Village, the school was erected at a height of nearly 4,000 meters above sea-level, almost halfway up the world's tallest mountain.

Fifty tatami mats were brought in my truck and helicopter and then had to be carried by students the last stretch of the way to the new school. The non-profit organization, led by Olympic gold medal winning judoka Kosei Inoue, plans to send Japanese coaches to teach at the dojo and bring in students from across Nepal.