Extreme sport has become a lifestyle for the resident of Armenia’s Shirak province, Garnik Sevoyan, 31.  Currently Garnik, who won all the mountain tops of the province back in the 90s, is actively engaged in diving, skydiving and hang gliding. 

According to him, not only the desire and hunger for adrenaline, but also the physical conditioning is very important in extreme exercising so that this extreme doesn’t become the last one.

“Fitness and experience is exactly what is necessary for risk assessment. One more important thing should be mentioned: one should do this sport not for self-affirmation among the surrounding, but for oneself if one likes and maximally enjoys it,” Garnik says.

Extreme sport is one of the types of adventure tourism. Over the years, more people strive to see the beauty of the undersea, go down the mountain top on skis and jump with parachute. Garnik finds it difficult to say which sport gives him more adrenaline. Nevertheless, he says: “Air and water, skydiving, paragliding, hang gliding, diving into the depth of the oceans and seas. Extreme sports have been quite rapidly developing in Armenia recently. Unfortunately, we don’t yet have sports skydiving, but we have paraglide and military parachute, and diving in Sevan.”  

One needs to have financial means to do extreme sports in the social conditions of Armenia, but this doesn’t hinder Garnik from doing such sports.  Moreover, in 2012 he had the opportunity to climb with an English group the highest mountain in Africa, Kilimanjaro, whose height - together with Uhuru Peak - is 5895 m.

Garnik is one of those lucky men who managed to find his way to the only undersea laboratory in the world, taking part in the Mission 31 undersea expedition organized by the grandson of legendary Jacques Cousteau. In 2015, the young man from Shirak dived in the Aegean Sea, sinking 34,5 m down, while ordinary diving allows going down maximum for 18 m.

 “I have been doing diving since 2008. Over these years I have tried bungee jumping, paragliding and air tunnel but I haven’t climbed Mount Ararat. Once you feel adrenaline buzz,  it’s difficult to stop and give up on new feelings,” the young man said.