16-Year-Old Preetham Goli From Hyderabad Successfully Summits Mount Kilimanjaro

Preetham, who is currently in the 12th grade, embarked on his journey on July 12th with a group of four climbers, guided by mountaineer Satyarup Siddhanta.

"One of the main reasons I wanted to summit Kilimanjaro was that after finishing Everest Base Camp, I was not satisfied. I wanted to do more, climb more, achieve more," Preetham shared. "While climbing Kilimanjaro, sometimes I felt lonely, but I learned to enjoy it. Being away from everyone and everything made me realize how simple our life was. Sometimes I felt really peaceful, which I had never felt before."

The summit day was particularly gruelling, starting at 3 AM in freezing conditions. "The summit trail was very hard due to the steep ascent and slippery ground made of fine gravel or sand. Right before reaching the summit, I started having a really bad headache, which I know is common due to the altitude, so I kept pushing on. The feeling when I reached the summit was just magical – all the problems I had while climbing just disappeared."

At the summit, Preetham unfurled the Indian national flag, the NCC flag, and his school flag, a moment that he describes as one of the best feelings in the world.

"I thank my school, Delhi Public School, Nacharam, for all the support, and I especially want to thank Satyarup Siddhanta Sir for helping me summit the mountain. Without him, the summit would have been very hard," Preetham added.