Local Men to Climb Philharmonie Stairs for Men's Health Awareness

A group of local men have announced the creation of the Philharmonie Mount Everest Climbers team and that they are organising an event to raise awareness about men's health.

The event is taking place on Saturday 19 November 2022 from 09:00 to 17:00 and will see participants climb the equivalent of Mount Everest by walking up and down the stairs in front of the Philharmonie in Luxembourg-Kirchberg. The event is being organised as part of global "Movember" fundraisers, which support men’s health projects around the world and aims to specifically raise awareness of the three biggest health risks for men: prostate cancer, testicular cancer and mental health issues.

Chronicle.lu recently had the opportunity to speak with Jekabs Vinauds, Senior Analyst at the Luxembourg-based International Climate Finance Accelerator (ICFA), to learn more about the new Philharmonie Mount Everest Climbers team and this upcoming event.

Chronicle.lu: Please tell us more about the Philharmonie Mount Everest Climbers team and motivation behind this event.

Jekabs Vinauds: Our team consists of Abin Oonnikunju and Shane Ryan, both Junior Auditors at EY Luxembourg; Cathal Keane, Advisor at Arendt Regulatory & Consulting, and myself, Jekabs Vinauds, together - the Philharmonie Mount Everest Climbers!

Our motivation behind this event is to raise awareness for mental health, suicide prevention, prostate cancer and testicular cancer. Other than growing beautiful moustaches, we are climbing the height of Mount Everest (8,850m) up and down the Philharmonie stairs this Saturday, from 09:00 to 17:00.

Chronicle.lu: Who came up with this idea and how was the team created?

Jekabs Vinauds: Movember was established in 2003 in Australia, but I got the idea for the climb during a project management class at the University of Limerick in Ireland where all four of us studied.

Vinette Mc Namara, my lecturer, invited Jack O’Connor, who is a Country Director for the Movember Foundation in Ireland to present the Movember Foundation. He explained how he used his project management skills to expand the reach of the foundation as well as mentioning some of the impressive challenges completed by participants throughout the years. The one that stood out to me was climbing Mount Everest on a set of stairs. I thought that was an impressive achievement and always wanted to do something similar. When I moved to Luxembourg at the beginning of 2020 and saw the Philharmonie stairs, I immediately knew that this would be the location to do it.

We all wanted to raise awareness during Movember and thought that we needed a challenge, so we’ve been doing the planning or fundraising together for this event!

Chronicle.lu: The team plans to walk up and down the Philharmonie stairs, totalling 17.7km, taking around seven hours each. For how long and how exactly did the team train for this?

Jekabs Vinauds: It’s funny because we haven’t really done much - just gone for a few walks. We often go to the gym together and I go to training with the House of Startups basketball team.

That’s why we’re counting on the support of the community to come and cheer us on! 

Chronicle.lu: Please tell us more about the Movember charity and why your team is supporting this charity.

Jekabs Vinauds: Movember is the only charity tackling men’s health on a global scale, year round. They’re addressing some of the biggest health issues faced by men: prostate cancer, testicular cancer, mental health and suicide prevention.

They know what works for men and how to find and fund the most innovative research to have both a global and local impact. They're independent of government funding, so they can challenge the status quo and invest quicker in what works. Since its inception in 2003, [it has] funded more than 1,250 men’s health projects around the world.

Chronicle.lu: What is the target amount that the team wants to raise during this event?

Jekabs Vinauds: We have a modest target of €1,000, but the more the better!

Chronicle.lu: Please elaborate on the reason behind growing or wearing moustaches for this event?

Jekabs Vinauds: Growing a moustache is a way to get the attention of people and create an opportunity to tell people about the Movember cause and the challenge we’re doing.

None of us usually rock a moustache, so when our friends, family and colleagues see us, they ask!

What’s also great is seeing other people with moustaches taking part in Movember or getting a thumbs up from people on the street for taking part in Movember.

Chronicle.lu: Is the Movember charity involved in any support initiatives in Luxembourg? If yes, which ones and how does Movember support them?

Jekabs Vinauds: Movember doesn’t support any initiatives in Luxembourg yet, but has contributed to 1,250 projects across 20 countries. You can check them out here: https://ex.movember.com/report-cards.

We know that times are tough, but if anyone would like to donate to our Movember fundraising event please follow this link: https://ie.movember.com/team/2438781.

Also, please come down and support us, we will be at the Philharmonie stairs on 19 November from 09:00 to 17:00. All encouragement will be greatly appreciated, and we will need it!