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Chitchat 8-year-old fulfils dream of reaching Everest base camp with dad after six months in gym

bobby

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Singapore — While most children his age spend school holidays having fun at home — going to the movies, shopping at the mall — eight-year-old Darrshan Raj Thurairajasingam set his mind on far loftier ambitions.

The Primary 3 student from Yio Chu Kang Primary School spent the June holidays scaling Mount Everest – the world’s tallest mountain. He did not get all the way up the 8,848-metre mountain, but did make it to the 5,364-metre base camp in Nepal. By comparison, the highest mountain in Africa, Kilimanjaro, stands only slightly taller at 5,895 metres.

The idea to climb to Everest base camp became planted in Darrshan’s mind last November after overhearing conversations between his parents about planning an expedition there.

His father, Mr Thurairajasingam Vijeyasingam, a 37-year-old gym owner, had been planning the trip for members of his gym. As he was discussing the plans with his wife at home, he offhandedly asked Darrshan, who was sitting next to him, if he wanted to join them.

Although the boy replied that he was keen, Mr Thurairajasingam did not think much of it at first. “We took his response very lightly, but he kept asking when he was going and how it would be for the next few weeks,” he said.

DIFFICULT BUT NOT IMPOSSIBLE FOR CHILDREN
Surprised by his son’s persistence and determination, Mr Thurairajasingam, who was also travelling to Everest base camp for the first time, began to seriously consider taking along Darrshan after reading reports of other children making the trek.

Reaching base camp is challenging even for adults. A Straits Times report from 2016 reported that Singapore permanent resident Stefen Chow attempted to reach the base camp with his then three-year-old daughter in tow, making it up to 4,000 metres.

With the support of his wife, Mr Thurairajasingam put in place a rigorous training regime for his son. “I made it very clear to him that if he wants to join us on the trip, he needed to be committed to the training,” he said.

For the next six months, Darrshan began to train at the gym three times a week for up to one and a half hours each time. This included running on the treadmill, skipping and jumping. Father and son also began cycling twice a week for 50 kilometres.

These exercises were on top of Darrshan’s usual sporting activities such as his twice-weekly football sessions at ActiveSG Football Academy at Serangoon Stadium, and his weekly swimming lessons at Hougang Swimming Complex.

Despite the rigorous training, Darrshan was undeterred.

“He would come home after school and ask if there was any training today. He would also ask many questions about the trip,” said Darrshan’s mother Ms Kavitha Mutusamy, 35.
In February this year, when Mr Thurairajasingam eventually realised that Darrshan was truly committed to joining the expedition, he bought his son flight tickets to Nepal.

ROCKY PATHS, UNEVEN TERRAINS AND CHILLING WINDS
However, it was still not enough to prepare them for the challenges of the trip when they eventually set out for the base camp from the town of Lukla in Nepal on June 8.

“We had watched a lot of YouTube videos showing the trek, but they only showed the nice parts. The journey was much harder,” said Darrshan, who was the youngest in a group of seven trekkers from his father’s gym, with the oldest being 51 years old.

The group had to manoeuvre rocky paths and uneven terrain which sapped them off their energy. They also had to brave the cold weather, which could plunge as low as minus 2°C at night. “It was so cold that it became difficult to sleep,” said Mr Thurairajasingam. “We would wake up in the morning feeling tired, but we would still have to brave zero degree temperatures when we set out the next morning.”

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Father and son on the trek, with Mount Everest dominating the skyline. Photo:Thurairajasingam Vijeyasingam

They also had to contend with strong winds of up to 20-km per hour.

“You can feel the chill of the cold wind through your bones and your head as you are walking,” recalled Mr Thurairajasingam, whose team spent up to eight hours each day walking up the mountain.

For Darrshan, it was crossing narrow suspension bridges that proved the scariest.

“We had to cross a bridge on our first day and it was scary because there was a river underneath us,” he said. However, he eventually became used to the bridges after crossing several more during their ascent.

Mr Thurairajasingam was most worried about whether Darrshan would be affected by altitude sickness, or if he would find the trek too tiring: “I was prepared to let the team continue and to bring Darrshan down the mountain if at any time he said he couldn’t do it.”

But Darrshan pressed on without showing any symptoms of altitude sickness.

So it was a proud moment for the father when he finally reached the base camp with his son on the afternoon of June 14, just several days short of Darrshan’s ninth birthday.

“It felt like a big achievement to make it to the base camp with my son. As a personal trainer, it also made me very happy to have brought an eight-year-old up to the base camp successfully,” said Mr Thurairajasingam who had summited mountains such as Mount Kinabalu in Malaysia with other expedition groups before.

The trek also gave Mr Thurairajasingam the opportunity to learn more about his son.

“I was amazed at how resilient he was and how focused he was on achieving his goal to reach the base camp. His attitude motivated me and the others in my team.”

Having conquered Everest base camp, Darrshan now has his sights set on conquering Mount Kinabalu, which is about 4,100-m. He will be joining the next expedition that his father will be organising for members in his gym next year.

For other parents who may want to trek with their children, Mr Thurairajasingam has some words of advice: “Look after your kids’ well-being first and never force them to do anything that is beyond their abilities. Participate in a lot of outdoor activities with your children so that both you and your kids are prepared.”
 
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