2 women chasing a climbing record across 14 mountains both died in avalanches on their last peak

• Two climbers vied to become the first US female to reach the peak of the world's 14 tallest mountains.
• They were hit by avalanches on their final peak in southern Tibet and died, per reports.

Two climbers who were competing to become the first American woman to scale the world's 14 tallest mountains died Saturday in avalanches on a remote peak in southern Tibet, according to reports.

Anna Gutu and Gina Marie Rzucidlo were climbing separately with their own sherpas, trying to become the first US woman to scale all of the world's 14 peaks above 8,000 meters, or 26,246 feet, when avalanches struck Mount Shishapangma, per The New York Times.

Gutu was confirmed dead with her Nepalese guide on Sunday by Chinese state news agency Xinhua, which cited the region's sports bureau.

Rzucdilo was declared dead alongside her Nepalese guide by Chinese authorities on Monday, prompting China to close Mount Shishapangma for the season due to unsafe snow conditions, her sister said in a statement on Facebook.

"Requests for search by helicopter from Nepal have been declined by the Chinese government," Christy Rzucidlo wrote, adding: "We have been told the search for their bodies may resume in the spring once weather conditions are favorable."

Rzucdilo was only 264 meters, about 866 feet, away from the summit when the avalanche struck, according to Xinhua.

Her mother told The New York Times that her daughter had climbed over five peaks above 8,000 meters this year, and eight others in previous years.

"What I heard was that she was the strongest and happiest ever on that mountain," Suzan Rzucdilo said, per the newspaper.

Gutu wrote about her adventures on Instagram, including mountain climbing, skydiving, and paragliding.

In early August, she posted a photo of herself at the top of the world's second-highest mountain, K2, lodged between China and Pakistan.

In the post, she said the mountain was known to have a "curse" for female climbers.

"I am happy to see that in recent years this curse has been broken by many female climbers," she said.

Mountaineering company Elite Exped said in an Instagram post that the fatal avalanches had "devastated the climbing community and our Elite Exped family."

"We are heartbroken at the loss of Anna and Mingmar — two highly experienced and bright stars of mountaineering," it said, adding: "Their legacies are ones of inspiration and achievement, and their loss is felt so very deeply."

A total of 52 climbers from the US, the UK, Romania, Albania, Italy, Japan, and Pakistan were trying to reach the peak when the avalanches hit, per NBC News.

The mountain, the 14th highest peak in the world, has been successfully climbed more than 300 times.

Less than 10% of those who have attempted to climb it have died while trying to do so, Reuters reported, citing private estimates.