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First man with AS scales world's highest mountain

By TAN YINGZI in Chongqing | China Daily | Updated: 2023-06-22 08:02

Left: Wang Minglong successfully reaches the summit of Mount Qomolangma. Center: Wang, the first person in the world with ankylosing spondylitis, scales Mount Qomolangma on May 18. Right: Wang, an outdoor enthusiast, rides his mountain bike in the open air.  CHINA DAILY

Power of dreams

Wang's story not only inspired his young students at the club but also several hundreds of patients living with AS.

"Many people with AS have followed my WeChat account and they said they have gained a lot of courage and strength from my daily posts of outdoor activities," Wang said.

In order to engage more people in his Mount Qomolangma project, he launched a "500 dream sponsors "program to raise funds for the trip.

"Many people forget their dreams or the power of dreams in their daily life," Wang said. "I want to enlighten their passion for life with my adventure."

The trip to climb Mount Qomolangma usually costs 500,000 yuan ($70,086). The plan was that each sponsor would donate 1,000 yuan and Wang would write down their dream on a piece of card and take the 500 cards to the top of the world.

He finally won the support from 506 sponsors from all walks of life, aged from six to 103, to help him realize his own dream.

Zhang Hong, Asia's first visually impaired person to climb Mount Qomolangma, was one of his sponsors, and his dream was to scale the 14 highest mountains in the world.

For Wang, his expeditions have only just begun. In five years, he plans to complete the Explorer's Grand Slam to climb the tallest mountain on every continent and ski to the North and South Poles.

"After my kids go to college, I will take my wife to travel around the world by bike," he said.

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