Described as “a trailblazer, and the most determined, tenacious, and motivated woman,” Preet Chandi is the ninth woman in history to ski solo to the South Pole and the first woman of colour to complete a solo expedition on the continent. Driven by an unending desire to push her mental and physical boundaries, Preet is any Army officer, physiotherapist, Nordic skier, ultramarathon runner, and endurance athlete with an iron will that has led to her making history and breaking barriers in the world of adventuring.
Facing the ultimate test of endurance, Preet packed 48 days of food and fuel to complete the solo, unsupported 700-mile expedition from the coastline of Antarctica to the geographic South Pole and completed the journey in just 40 days on 3 Jan 2022. Her aims for this expedition were to inspire as many people as possible. She did not grow up learning of polar explorers or know much about Antarctica when she decided to embark on this adventure. Preet wanted to show that everybody starts somewhere.
Preet is a captivating speaker who encourages audiences to push past their boundaries, believe in themselves, and to set out to achieve their goals without being labelled a rebel. She emphasizes that, no matter where you’re from or what your starting point in life is, you are capable of smashing the glass ceiling into a million pieces and creating your own definition of “normal” on the journey to success.
Preet has always been fascinated with how much the human body can endure. Her first ultra-marathon (50 miles in the Peak District) left her feeling very achy and sick, but she had already caught the bug. The scale of her adventures started to grow and her definition of what is normal began to change. She completed Marathon des Sables 156-mile ultramarathon in the desert and began to create her own challenges such as a 24-hour step-up challenge during lockdown to raise money for NHS Charities and a 30-hour endurance event she organised whilst on operational tour in South Sudan with the British Army.
Preet’s full time role is as a physiotherapist in the British Army where she has completed large scale exercises/deployments in Nepal, Kenya and South Sudan. She completed her Sports and Exercises Medicine MSc in Oct 2021 and will be adding a research element to her next expedition in Antarctica.
She is currently spending four months talking to schools all over the UK and inspiring the next generation. People from all generations listening to her talk have labelled her as “inspirational.”