Marios Giannakou met 22-year-old college student Eleftheria Tosiou while giving a talk about climbing Mount Olympus.
She told him that it’s something she had always wanted to do, but couldn’t get there on her own. She has been in a wheelchair almost her entire life. Marios felt compassion for her and said he'd carry her to the top!
Giannakou is no stranger to taking on challenges, he took first place in a frigid 93-mile cross-country race in Antartica and had already been to the top of Mount Olympus’ highest peak 50 times. But this time, he wore a specially modified backpack to hold Tosiou so she could experience the summit herself. With a support team of eight, they climbed for 10 hours, camping overnight on the mountain before the grueling ascent to Olympus’ tallest peak, Mount Mytikas.
He explains, “For me, all international races, the medals and the distinctions so far, mean little compared to that goal.”
Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, called to congratulate Eleftheria who is now the first person with a physical disability to reach the summit of Mount Olympus.