Elia Khoury’s friends hadn’t the faintest idea that the climb of Kornet al-Sawda with his friend Karim would turn him into a passionate professional athlete, breathing the summit fever.
Little did his parents know that one day he’ll be carrying the Lebanese flag atop the highest summits of Europe, stirring in them great faith that he would ultimately become a sports messenger for Lebanon.
Khouri tells MTV about a Lebanon that is rich and exceptional in extreme sports, especially in mountaineering.
For his breathing exercises and endurance training, he climbed the Cedars, Sannine, and Mzar mountains but his attention was locked on Russia's summit, the highest in all of Europe.
Twenty-one-year-old Elia picked the Russian Mount Elbrus, standing at 5642 meters above sea level and proudly representing Europe’s toughest challenge for mountain climbers.
Elia stood as the youngest of the group and the only Lebanese, noting that a good number of Lebanese has climbed this summit before. The journey to the top wasn't hard for him; in fact, he was surprised by his capacity to endure low atmospheric pressure and lack of oxygen, a rewarding feeling which relieved him and instilled a great passion in him to move forward in his quest to conquer this sport.
He met Dutch, Russians, and Danish people during the expidition and relayed to them tales of his beautiful Lebanon, prompting one of them to pose next to Elia and the Lebanese flag.
Santiveri's support helped the young climber settle some of his travel and sports needs, but the latter hopes for more tangible interest from the Youth and Sports Ministry so as to sustain his passion for spreading his nation’s image worldwide.
Indeed, rock climbing and cave exploring, Elia’s most favored sports, have been spreading like wildfire lately with the support of local and international NGOs.
After his successful ascent of Europe’s highest mountain, Elia, who will be traveling to Australia to complete his studies, has set his mind to be the first Lebanese to conquer New Zealand’s summits.
Elia is not only destined to conquer mountain tops, his name will be inscribed next to Lebanese sports heroes who carry their nation’s name proudly atop all summits.
An article originally written in Arabic by Charbel Rahme
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