The Princess of Wales follows the royal tradition of becoming a patron of polar expeditions

In January, she became the first woman of color to walk to the South Pole alone, spending 50 days walking 700 miles in minus 50C temperatures and 70mph winds at the age of 32.

She completed the route in 40 days, just short of the women’s world record held by Joanna Davidson of Sweden (38 days).

Next month, she will attempt to cross Antarctica more than 1,000 miles in 75 days, pulling a sled weighing around 120kg.

Captain Chandy is a physiotherapist and active duty member of the British Army, currently working as a physiotherapist providing rehabilitation for wounded soldiers and officers in Buckinghamshire.

Captain Chandy, a former junior international tennis player, is an endurance athlete who has competed in ultramarathons around the world and trains by dragging tires through the streets of her home town of Derby.

Earlier this year, she said: “There are only a handful of female adventurers who have done an unsupported solo trek on this continent. It’s time to add names, diversity and make history.

“Nothing is impossible.”

History of royal patronage of polar expeditions

The long history of royal patronage of polar expeditions was celebrated by Edward VII during the “Heroic Age” of exploration, starting the tradition of raising the Union Flag in the name of “King and Country”.

Queen Elizabeth II was the patron of the 1956 Commonwealth Transantarctic Expedition led by British explorer Vivian Fuchs and Sir Edmund Hillary of New Zealand.

In 1957, Prince Philip became the first member of the royal family to cross the Antarctic Circle. Following his death in 2021, the British Antarctic Territory lowered the Union Flag at Rothera Research Station.

The Princess Royal is a patron of the Great Britain’s Antarctic Heritage Foundation, and she visited Antarctica in 2002 to mark the centenary of Scott Base. She visited again in 2007.