Recently, we reported on two Greek champions, Diana Zerdila and Giannis Kordoutis, who lugged a miniature ping-pong table to play atop Greece's Mt. Olympus. Now, a Russian club is raising the stakes. The Ural Mining and Metallurgical Company table tennis club (TTC UMMC) has incorporated some extreme cardio into its training. For leg day, the club bundled up to scale Mount Elbrus, which stands at an altitude of 5,642 meters (18,510 feet). Elbrus is tops not only in Russia but all of Europe, a lofty distinction which TTC UMMC also aims to claim. With the help of such Rocky IV-style training, they just might pull it off. The signing of a few ringers will also elevate their chances. England's Liam Pitchford, Denmark's Jonathan Groth, Croatia's Tomislav PUCAR and Russia's own Alexander Tiutriumov will do their best to compensate for the departures of Andrej Gacina (Poland) and Alexander Shibaev (Russia). With Europe's top table tennis talent seeking ever-higher peaks to supplement their cross-training, it's only a matter of time until these hyper-competitive athletes are elbowing each other out of the way as they race to plant their club's flags atop Mt. Everest. With the bar set so high, however, whatever can they possibly do for arm day?

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