Sailor On Board HMS Queen Elizabeth Completes Climbing Challenge For NHS

A sailor on board Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth has completed a mammoth mountaineering challenge to raise money for the NHS. 

Chef James Hopkinson has scaled the height of Rheasilvia - thought to be the tallest mountain in the solar system - by climbing the stairs of the £3 billion warship.

The mountain, found on the asteroid Vesta, stands at a height of around 14 miles - nearly three times as tall as Mount Everest. 

Chef Hopkinson took on the challenge as the ship began operational sea training off England's south coast.

Over three weeks, he walked up four flights of stairs from his accommodation on No.6 deck to No.2 deck - climbing it 70 or 80 times a day for two to three hours.

He said: “I’ve never done anything like this before and I don’t really go to the gym either.

“But I just wanted to do something a bit different. I have to admit that I nearly gave up around the 11,000 metre mark.”

HMS Queen Elizabeth's Commanding Officer, Captain Angus Essenhigh, was at the top of the ladders for Chef Hopkinson's 1,675th and final ascent.

"It makes my knees sore just thinking about it, but it was amazing to see James’ dogged determination and huge congratulations on this remarkable achievement to an inspiring young man,” he said.

So far, Chef Hopkinson has raised more than £200 of his £1,000 target. 

Cover image: Chef James Hopkinson climbs the stairs of HMS Queen Elizabeth (Picture: Royal Navy).