A 72-year-old traveler Sarsenbai Kotyrashev can get into the Guinness Book of World Records for being the oldest person that traveled 8,000 kilometers on foot, QazMonitor reports citing Jibek Joly.
The elderly traveler has begun his journey from the Ulytau region with the intention of trekking all of Kazakhstan and circling back to his home. Kotyrashev dreamed about the endeavor for over six years but only recently got the chance to make it happen.
While traveling he met with craftspeople from many Kazakh cities and even collected a special catalog of artisans and donated it to UNESCO.
“I want to prove by example that tourism is well-developed in Kazakhstan. Next year, I am planning to go traveling all over the world,” Kotyrashev shared.
The organizer of the marathon Bakhtiyar Kozhakhmetov said that the Guinness World Records recently send them a proposal to include the name of Sarsenbai Kotyrashev in the book.
“According to them, no older person has covered such a long walking marathon. It is a great honor and pride for us. The popularization of the Ulytau region is one of our’s important tasks,” said Kozhakhmetov.