Polar Preet, the British-Indian braveheart who journeyed alone to the South Pole

Captain Preet Chandi has an unusual nickname, but when you learn about her personal achievements, you begin to understand why. Captain Preet is also known as Polar Preet because the 32-year-old British-Indian army officer became the first woman of colour to complete a harrowing 1126 km journey to the South Pole solo.
The British-Indian explorer has many feathers on her cap. Besides being an army officer, she is also a Nordic Skier, ultra-marathon runner, physiotherapist, and endurance athlete. Polar Preet has now emerged as an icon, she has managed to complete her journey to the South Pole alone, in just 40 days.

The braveheart explorer has been sending messages to her family and friends via voicemails. Her voicemail from January 3, 2022, was the one that confirmed the success of her journey. In that voicemail, she mentions that she reached the South Pole, and is feeling varied emotions. She says in the voicemail that her experience there seems surreal.

The 1126 km journey saw her go from Antarctica’s Hercules Inlet to the South Pole. Not to forget that she has been doing so while pulling a 90 kg sledge all by herself. The sledge contained all her essentials, such as food and fuel.

Reaching the coldest, driest, and windiest continent on Earth is no easy thing to do, especially when you are battling a temperature of up to -50 degrees celsius.


Polar Preet has always been an avid adventurer, and has been on hikes and climbs in various parts of the world, such as Mexico, the Alps, Kenya, Peru, Iceland, Bolivia, Nepal, and Morocco. She started her first half-marathon at the age of 20, and has been challenging herself to achieve massive things since then.

She believes that by completing the journey to the South Pole, she can be a role model to young people, women, and for people from ethnic backgrounds.