RIYADH, 20 May 2008 -- In another 24 hours, Farouk Al-Zuman will make history when he becomes the first Saudi to climb to the summit of Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world.
"This has been my dream," said an excited Al-Zuman speaking to Arab News by phone from one of the peaks of Mount Everest.
"The mission and ambition of my life has always been to unfurl Saudi Arabia's flag on the summit of Everest one day," he said. "I want to set an example for Saudi youth. My team and I are making good progress. We hope to reach the summit in the early hours of May 21."
Al-Zuman said he "was currently resting at the final post trying to catch some sleep with the help of oxygen before heading to the summit on Tuesday."
Speaking about the weather conditions, he said: "It is always a life and death scenario here. The weather forecast is favorable and possibly we will reach the top according to our plan."
Thirty-year-old Al-Zuman is an economics graduate and studied at Oregon State University in the US. While in the US, he scaled Mount Rainer (4,300 meters) in Washington. "Since then, I have been looking forward to scaling Mount Everest."
Al-Zuman is currently employed with Riyadh-based Attariq Communications.
About the condition of electronic machines and other life support systems at Mount Everest, Al-Zuman said: "Many of the high-tech gadgets have failed to work properly, but I am fully acclimatized to the altitude."
On his health conditions, he said: "I am fine except for some coughing and exhaustion." Nearly 210 climbers have died so far while climbing the mountain.
Talking about his team, Al-Zuman said: "Everyone is resting at the moment, including all of our Nepali sherpa guides. It is pretty exciting for all of us. Everyone is doing well. Because temperatures here are known to dip to minus 50 degrees Celsius on Everest, we are a little worried."
He said he was missing home. "I can picture my family members and friends. Please convey my love to everyone in Saudi Arabia and a big thank you for all the support."
The eight-member team, of which Al-Zuman is a member, is led by a Canadian, Tim Rebel. Al-Zuman has received a lot of media attention in Saudi Arabia and his progress is being closely followed via satellite.
His historic expedition and the whole expedition team was a bit disturbed after Nepal banned all expeditions to Everest till May 10 as China wanted to take the Beijing Olympic torch to the mountain at the end of April or early May. The Nepalese government has given permission to 290 climbers from 32 teams to climb the world's highest mountain this year.
By M. Ghazanfar Ali Khan
© Arab News 2008
