Malaysians have proven once again that age is just a number when it comes to pursuing your dreams. You might think it’s impossible but this Malaysian has proved everyone wrong as he triumphs over the trials of old age and stands “on the top of the world”.
On 12th May this year, N. Elanghovan had conquered Mount Everest, being the oldest Malaysian to reach the peak of the mountain. Proud of his accomplishment, the mountaineer had showed his certificate, issued by the Department of Tourism of Nepal’s Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Civil Aviation, as a verification of his 8, 849-metre-climb to the top.
In 2014, as the Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) retiree had set foot in the Everest Base Camp, he was determined on achieving his goal of climbing to the peak of Mount Everest—the highest mountain in the world. N. Elanghovan had participated in this expedition along with his team that included T.Ravichandran (57) and Sidharth Routray (40).
“Standing on top of the world is hard to describe in words. It was truly a ‘top-of-the-world feeling’ of realising my dream. All the hard work I put in and the sacrifices I made paid off,” said Elanghovan, according to Bernama.
The 64-year-old mountaineer had filed a request for the Malaysia Book Of Records (MBOR) to include his feat in its records. MBOR had informed that the panel of judges had agreed to his request to be listed as the oldest Malaysian to climb Mount Everest, surpassing the previous record holder—the late Idris Said, Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM)— when he was 52 years old in 2007.
His dream does not end here as Elanghovan has plans on conquering the G7—seven summits in seven continents—with two peaks already in the bag including Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa in which he climbed in 2016.
Source: Lobak Merah, Bernama, New Straits Times
Neetashini Kanendran contributed to this article
