Russian boxer Nikolai Valuev, the tallest and heaviest ever WBA heavyweight world champion, led an expedition to explore Yeti sightings in West Siberia. When asked by RIA Novosti if he believed in Yeti, Valuev said: “If I see him, then I will.”
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© Photo : Photos provided by the Kemerovo Region administration’s press service
Russian boxer Nikolai Valuev, the tallest and heaviest ever WBA heavyweight world champion, led an expedition to explore Yeti sightings in West Siberia. When asked by RIA Novosti if he believed in Yeti, Valuev said: “If I see him, then I will.”
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© Photo : Photos provided by the Kemerovo Region administration’s press service
During the one-day trip, Valuev and other expedition members visited the Azass Cave in the Kemerovo region's Mount Shoriya. The cave is famous for a fossilized footprint of an unidentified creature that some suggest may be the much sought after Yeti.
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© Photo : Photos provided by the Kemerovo Region administration’s press service
A shaman ritual was held before the search.
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© Photo : Photos provided by the Kemerovo Region administration’s press service
The shaman tried to appease the spirits and asked for their assistance in the search.
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© Photo : Photos provided by the Kemerovo Region administration’s press service
The ritual was held at a 300-meter high plateau, known as Mount Love.
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© Photo : Photos provided by the Kemerovo Region administration’s press service
Then the athleste wrapped a ribbon on a sacred birch and made a wish.
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© Photo : Photos provided by the Kemerovo Region administration’s press service
After the ritual, the expedition headed to the Azass Cave.
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© Photo : Photos provided by the Kemerovo Region administration’s press service
The expedition had to travel through dense taiga and by boat to reach the cave.
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© Photo : Photos provided by the Kemerovo Region administration’s press service
The boxer said a 40-strong group was unlikely to meet a Yeti, even if he or she really existed.
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© Photo : Photos provided by the Kemerovo Region administration’s press service
“This journey gives an opportunity to visit undisturbed taiga, breathe truly pure air and admire the beauty of the local nature,” Valuev said.
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© Photo : Photos provided by the Kemerovo Region administration’s press service
In February 2009, the Kemerovo regional administration released a report that local hunters had spotted "some hairy humanoid creatures with a height of 1.5-2 meters" near the Azass Cave. Photo: Nikolai Valuev in Mount Shoriya.
