2 Canadians among group joining Prince Harry on Antarctic race
Posted November 28, 2013 8:18 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Two Canadians are among a group joining Prince Harry on a grueling Antarctic race.
The race, called Walking with the Wounded, covers 335 kilometres of mostly icy terrain – temperatures rarely climb above 0 C, and Antarctica is known to be the windiest and driest place on Earth.
The race raises money for injured veterans.
Canadians Chris Downey, 32, and Alexandre Beaudin D’Anjou, 32, who served in Afghanistan and were both were injured, are participating. D’Anjou suffers chronic back pain and has post-traumatic stress disorder. Downey lost his right eye and suffered severe burns.
They will compete as part of Team Soldier On.
In total, three teams of wounded servicemen and women, along with guides and patrons, will compete to reach the South Pole first.
Prince Harry, the fourth in line to the throne, is the patron of Team U.K. and will participate in the entire race. He was also the Royal Patron of the charity’s North Pole expedition in 2011.
Walking with the Wounded is a U.K.-based charity that funds both the re-training and re-education of wounded servicemen and women, with the aim of helping them find long term employment after they have left the Armed Forces.
The expedition is scheduled to begin on Saturday, with the teams hoping to reach the geographic South Pole by Dec. 16.
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With files from Reuters
