Russia Helps Guatemalan Man Become His Country’s First Cosmonaut

[Judi Lynn]

Russia Helps Guatemalan Man Become His Country’s First Cosmonaut



© Photo: Vinicio Montoya


21:48 24.05.2016(updated 22:12 24.05.2016)

Vinicio Montoya de León, a 49-year old native of Guatemala, is set to become the first Central American astronaut in history by late 2018 – early 2019.

The chain of events that led an ordinary Guatemalan dentist to become a successful candidate for a space flight is nothing short of remarkable.

"My life used to be pretty erratic, but after getting into a traffic accident I reexamined my priorities. I realized that there’s one thing in the world that money can’t buy – life. So I decided to live it to the fullest," Montoya told Sputnik.

This decision led Montoya to accomplish a number of feats, including climbing Mount Everest, scuba and sky diving, and working as a fireman. And eventually, a company that supported him in his endeavors suggested that he should enroll into an astronaut training course run by a private US enterprise as part of the suborbital flight program.

This training program effectively allowed Montoya to become an astronaut candidate for NASA, but as the stalwart Guatemalan managed to endure almost all of the trials put before him, the final test proved to be too much: since Montoya wasn’t part of any national space agency, the only way for him to become a NASA astronaut candidate was to become a US citizen.

More:
http://sptnkne.ws/bt9p