British polar explorer Felicity Aston MBE is an author, speaker, expedition leader and former Antarctic scientist. In 2012 she became the first woman to ski alone across Antarctica. It was a journey of 1744km that took 59 days to complete and which gave her a place in the book of Guinness World Records.
What does your adventure involve?
My adventure involves ten women from across Europe and the Middle-East skiing together to the North Pole.
Why are you doing it?
We are doing it to explore the relationship between Arabic and Western women in the hope that we can provide some insight and perhaps make people question their own preconceptions.
Who are you going with?
My team include women from Saudi Arabia, Sweden, Kuwait, Cyprus, Oman, Slovenia, Qatar, France, UAE and the UK. We range in age from 26 to 49 and have a variety of occupation, background, family and previous experience. We tried to make the team as representative as possible!
How have you prepared?
So far the team have prepared for the expedition during two training expeditions. The first on a glacier in Iceland and the second in the white sand dunes of Oman. We plan two more training expeditions before we leave for the North Pole next year.
Who is your role model?
I don’t have a specific role model. Instead, I am inspired by curiosity about the things I read and the ideas I hear, and particularly by maps. It is impossible to look at a map and not imagine a journey!
Read more about Felicity Aston
Read more about the EuroArabian North Pole Expedition
