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Who was Slava Leykind? Connecticut millionaire, 43, dies after taking part in 'Everesting' challenge
Slava Leykind died after taking part in a mountain endurance challenge in Wyoming.
A 43-year-old millionaire and father of three from Westport, Connecticut, died after taking part in a mountain endurance challenge in Wyoming, according to a New York Post report. Slava Leykind died on July 2 at a hospital in Idaho, just days after joining the “Everesting” challenge at Snow King Mountain in Jackson Hole.
Who was Slava Leykind?
Born in Minsk in 1982, Leykind moved to the US in 1988. He had a business degree from the University of Michigan and spent 20 years working at CG Sawaya Partners, an investment firm in . He lived in Westport with his wife, Amy Keller Leykind, and their children, Charlotte, Eloise, and Jonah, according to the Mirror report.
The event challenges participants to climb a total of 29,029 feet, the same height as Mount Everest, within 36 hours.
At Snow King, that means hiking up the mountain 19 times. After each climb, participants ride a gondola back to the base before starting the next ascent.
Leykind managed to climb the mountain six times before he started feeling sick. According to Jackson Hole News & Guide, emergency crews were called to the mountain at 11:28 p.m. to help and transport him. He later died from “an electrolyte imbalance causing cardiac arrest,” said Teton County Coroner Brent Blue.
Slava Leykind was ‘the pride and joy of his parents’
His obituary read, “Slava Leykind, 43, of Westport, passed away on July 2 from complications sustained while participating in a mountain endurance event earlier that week. A perfect soulmate for over two decades to Amy Keller Leykind, and superhuman father to Charlotte, Eloise and Jonah Leykind.
“Despite his significant professional success at a young age, Slava’s role as a husband and father was his greatest achievement, passion and pride. He fervently supported his children, bringing love and a sense of calm to the wonderful chaos of a full house. Slava was the pride and joy of his parents, Art and Nelly Leykind, and of his two older brothers, Gene and Max.”
