SINGAPORE: Singapore's first Women's Everest Team has postponed their attempt to scale Mount Everest this month due to a shortage of funds.

The six-woman team needs half a million for the trip but only S$80,000 has been raised so far.

So the team has decided to delay the climb till next year.

The journey to Everest took more than 4 years in the making. Singapore's first all-woman Everest team has been training six days a week in preparation for the climb.

However, their team leader, Jane Lee, said the hard work will not go to waste.

She said: "We were a little bit disappointed because we were looking forward to 2008 for the last 4 years. But at the same time the team was also very positive. With another year it does give us more time for more sponsors, so its not all bad.

"The skills that we acquire and the experience on the mountains will stay with us. It does not have an expiry date to the skills that we acquire along the way.

“All of us are still very focused on the fact that Everest is going to happen just that it will be one year later, we're still looking forward to training for it and putting in our effort for another year.”

The team is planning to raise more funds by approaching corporate sponsors and selling merchandise like their T-shirts.

Currently, half of the S$80,000 in the team's kitty has been sponsored by pharmaceutical company, Wyeth.

And the Singapore Sports Council is giving half of about S$30,000 in grants to the team for the trip.

The team can claim the other half only after returning from the climb.

The remaining S$500,000 needed for the trip includes money for airfare, equipment, and guides. Climbing permits will already cost the team about US$10, 000 per climber.

The team previously launched a three-month online fund-raising campaign called "Adopt-A-Metre" in December 2007 asking for a minimum donation of S$10. That raised about S$8,000.

The team also managed to collect about S$30,000 from selling calendars.

Training will continue, until enough funds have been raised for the whole team to make the trip in 2009. -CNA/vm