site.btaTourism Minister Honours Bulgarian who Climbed Avicenna Peak

Bulgarian Tourism Minister Eftim Miloshev on Friday presented the title of Ambassador of Destination Bulgaria to Georgi Kolevichin, who is member of the Ministry's staff and recently climbed Ibn Sina (Abicenna) Peak, the highest point of the Pamir Mountains (7,134 m), Miloshev's Ministry said in a press release.

"The entire expedition lasted some 30 days, and the assault of the peak took us a little over 10 hours," said Kolevichin.

He shared that the expedition was exceedingly harsh because evening temperatures fell to minus 31 C and the wind reached 45 km/h. "Even the locals and the guides of other expeditions said that this was the worst weather in ten years," said the mountaineer, who was the only one of all members of the international expedition to reach the summit.

Kolevichin has on his record climbs of the 6,310 m Chimborazo in Ecuador, the 5,642 m Mount Elbrus in the Caucasus (Europe's highest), Toubkal in Morocco (4,167 m), which is the highest point in the Atlas Mountains, North Africa and the Arab world, and two other peaks in Ecuador, Illiniza Norte and Cayambe. His next target is South America's highest elevation, Aconcagua (6,962 m).