Mountain May Be Named for Arnold; now king of the hill?

Mountain May Be Named for Schwarzenegger
The Associated Press
Friday, October 10, 2003; 11:32 AM

TBILISI, Georgia - Arnold Schwarzenegger, who scaled to the top of California politics, could now get a mountain named after him in the former Soviet republic of Georgia.

But there's a catch: To receive the honor, the governor-elect of California must visit the country, a representative of Georgia's president said Friday.

The government of Georgia sent Schwarzenegger a letter of congratulations and an invitation to visit the country, said Temur Shashiashvili, who is President Eduard Shevardnadze's representative in western Imertia region.

Georgia, which borders Russia and Turkey, invited Schwarzenegger to visit in the past, but the actor-turned-politician was unable to make it, Shashiashvili said. At the time, the government planned to name the mountain in the Caucasus range in his honor.

Officials resurrected the idea for a Mount Schwarzenegger after the actor won the governor's race Tuesday.

"Now, congratulating him on his win, we are again inviting him to visit us. And we hope that it will happen," Shashiashvili said. "We want to establish close contacts with California."

If the plan comes to fruition, the ceremony naming a peak after Schwarzenegger will be "a colorful show in which the leading role will be played by the renowned actor," he said.

The mountain in western Georgia does not currently have a name, and officials have declined to disclose its precise location and size.