Rescuers searching for a missing Australian climber have found a body believed to be that of a Japanese mountaineer who disappeared 26 years ago in southwest China's Sichuan Province, the provincial mountaineering association said on Tuesday.

Local villagers reported the discovery on Mount Gongga to the rescuers who are searching for Andrew Clem Lindenmayer, 47, who was reported missing in the area last month.

A 12-strong mountaineering team from Hokkaido, Japan, came to climb the Mount Gongga in May 1981, but eight members disappeared after falling. A rescue official said the clothing and equipment on the body indicated it might be one of the Japanese team.

Gongga -- Tibetan for "highest snow-capped mountain" -- attracts both tourists and mountaineers to its soaring peaks and panoramic scenery. It has more than 20 peaks above 6,000 meters, the highest at 7,556 meters.

(Xinhua News Agency June 12, 2007)