A local expedition group yesterday announced the establishment of a six-member team set to undertake an unprecedented 17,000km journey across Mongolia and central Asia, in the hope of retracing the path taken by Mongol Genghis Khan in the 12th century.
The Sanho Expedition Association (
The six-member team, dubbed the "Discover Genghis Khan Expedition" (
Applicants went through a series of screening tests, including long-distance running and climbing high staircases with heavy baggage.
The most grueling stage of the test involved a six-day trekking program, during which applicants were required to walk 30km a day and in addition jot down their experiences either in words or sketches at specified intervals.
Hsu Hai-teng, who has traveled around the world on foot himself, said that his idea of retracing the westward route of Genghis Khan came from reading in the Washington Post in 1995 that the Mongol emperor had been chosen as the most influential figure of the last millennium.
Hsu said that it was at that time that he decided to mount the expedition, as Genghis Khan's westward expedition changed the history of the East and West.
Genghis Khan's influence is still felt today, and many Europeans can trace their ancestors back to Mongolia, Hsu said.
The six team members consist of four men and two women between the ages of 25 and 40.
The team will undergo a six-week training course before setting out.
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