'I felt the bone snap' – Hannah Otto survives 40% gradients, snowy summit and fracture to set epic one-day Kilimanjaro summit record

Hannah Otto (Scott Sports) added another endurance record to her resume on Wednesday, this one to an elevation of 19,300 feet above sea level. On November 4, she completed a Fastest Known Time (FKT) with Beyond the Summit: Kilimanjaro for World Bike Relief, becoming the first woman to use a mountain bike to summit Mount Kilimanjaro and descend in one day.

Her effort on the highest mountain in Africa almost came to an abrupt end with two miles to go, when she slipped in some mud and broke her tibia. She was able to remount her bike and pedal with one leg to complete the journey, a film crew nearby capturing the effort for a future film, though she refused assistance so the record would count, recorded as ‘one day’ for the FKT since it was a mark.

“Kilimanjaro FKT!! Mission accomplished! Dream come true! The first known woman to climb and descend Kilimanjaro in one day by bicycle,” she posted to Instagram one day ago.

“From the dark hours of the early morning and listening to the monkeys scream at me in the rainforest to steep pitches over 40% gradients, to scrambling over rocks with a bike on my back, to a 19,300-foot [5895 metre] summit covered in snow this was the best experience of my entire life and also the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

“As if it wasn’t hard enough, with two miles to go I had a small crash. It was simple, just sliding out in some mud. But my foot got caught and I felt the bone snap. I laid in the mud feeling my dreams slip away, and that felt more painful than any broken bone. I crawled to my bike, used it as a crutch, and finished the final two miles pedaling with one leg to the finish.

“X-rays show a broken tibia. I think this shows that a dream may just be the most powerful thing in the world.”

The Utah-based mountain bike specialist completed her fifth season as part of the Life Time Grand Prix two weeks before making the trip to Africa. She ended her run of four consecutive seasons in the top 10, missing the mark by just three points for 11th overall. Her best race finishes in the series this year were third at Little Sugar MTB and eighth at Leadville Trail 100 MTB, a race she won in 2022.

Otto has accumulated an eye-popping collection of FKTs, which she also uses as training for her endurance off-road racing. Last fall she set a new FKT for women on Mauna Kea, riding the 55-mile (88.5km) mountain road with 13,700 feet (4,175 metres) of climbing in Hawaii in 5 hours, 43 minutes and 50 seconds. She also has a trio of FKT records in high terrain US desert routes - Kokopelli Train, White Rim and Whole Enchilada.

While only 26.5 miles in distance (42.6km) in Tanzania, the main obstacle was elevation gain across the dormant volcano. The summit is just above 19,300 feet (5,895 metres) with five climate zones crossed from top to bottom.

Several days prior to her solo FKT, Otto made an initial ascent with a group and local crew, including a lead guide who had summited Kilimanjaro over 180 times. The 'first' summit was made on November 1.

"The entire crew made it to the top to celebrate this momentous moment together. Now we descend all the way back to the bottom and I’ll attempt to summit in just one day on November 3rd," she wrote on her social diary.

"After seeing this whole mountain piece by piece, it scares me. Things can change in an instant and the only constant is inconsistency. But that’s the entire point. I’m diving into the fear, I’m believing despite not knowing. I hope what anyone takes away from this attempt is the bravery to try without promise. We’re almost at $60K raised for World Bicycle Relief via The Intrepid Foundation!"

She said she realised her power on the bike would drop at the higher altitude, so she was keeping a close watch on her heart rate. "Instead of tracking miles I'm tracking elevation climbed."

Clad in a heavy coat, lined gloves and her helmet, Otto smiled for a photo when she was able to dismount and sit on the rock wall at the top of the mountain with a bright blue sky shining above.

"This film will be absolutely epic; that I’m sure of," Otto posted. The date of the film release is yet to be announced.

The fundraising campaign for World Bicycle Relief has raised $62,137 so donations going through the Intrepid Travel Foundation so that up to 1,000 bicycles reach women and girls to access education, healthcare and jobs.