The Walking With The Wounded South Pole Challenge 2013 expedition announced all the teams for the 2013 race across Antarctica. The three teams consist of wounded soldiers from Australia, United Kingdom, Canada and The United States, and the expedition represents the first time that amputees will attempt a trek across the highest, coldest and driest desert on the planet.
Prince Harry, who is a part of Team UK/Glenfiddich, will participate in the 335-kilometer expedition. Prince Harry also joined the Walking With The Wounded North Pole expedition in 2011, but this time, he will take a more active role in the operation, which is scheduled for November 2013.
“Something that draws me back to this charity and these people time and again, and always will, is the toughness of mind and an unquenchable spirit that simply refuses to say ‘I am beaten’,” Prince Harry said at the formal launch of the South Pole Challenge in London on April 19.
Meet the teams
USA Soldiers to Summits HERE
Soldiers On Commonwealth HERE
Team UK/Glenfiddich HERE
Racing on Madshus skis
Madshus is proud to be one of the expedition sponsors, supplying skis, boots and other essential expedition equipment to the teams. And thereby, Antarctica becomes yet another venue where Madshus skis are the name of the game.
Team members were selected for the South Pole trip following a rigorous process of detailed analysis from all Walking With The Wounded management staff, as well as medical feedback from the Walking With The Wounded expedition doctor and psychologist, and the three polar guides of the expedition.
More about the 2011 Walking With The Wounded North Pole Expedition HERE
Walking With the Wounded – the Story Behind
The charity “Walking With The Wounded” was founded by Ed Parker and Simon Daglish in 2010. The purpose is to raise funds for re-education and re-training of wounded servicemen and women to help them reestablish a civilian life, as well as build a network to all wounded veterans.
“Our armed forces today are being asked to do so much in our name and on our behalf. Every day, young men and women are risking their lives in extreme circumstances. They do this with great professionalism and courage. Many have made the ultimate sacrifice, losing their lives in the course of duty, and we must never forget them. But there is another story.
During the course of operations, many young men and women suffer horrific injuries. When the wounded return home they face a very different future to the one they had planned, with challenges they never imagined. Needless to say, they meet this uncertainty with the same courage and determination that they demonstrated on the front line. But theirs is a long road to recovery, and for many their future outside the Armed Forces is unsure.
This is the future that Walking With The Wounded is supporting. The funds raised finance new qualifications, courses and further education for those who are seriously injured. It enables the blind, the burn victims, the mentally injured, the amputees and all the other wounded to rebuild their lives and to return to the work place.”
To learn more about Walking With the Wounded: http://walkingwiththewounded.org.uk/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/walkingwiththewounded