Captain Preet Chandi: South Pole trekker receives honorary degree

An Army officer who made history by trekking to the South Pole has received an honorary degree.

Preet Chandi, from Derby, is thought to have become the first woman of colour to complete solo and unaided a 700-mile Antarctic journey.

She was given the degree during a ceremony at the University of Derby on Thursday.

Capt Chandi is now hoping to become the first woman to cross Antarctica alone and unsupported.

She was made an honorary master of the university "in recognition of her outstanding achievements in endurance performance, and her determination to inspire future generations".

Capt Chandi said she was "absolutely honoured" to attend the ceremony.

"I believe the more we do, the more we are capable of," she said.

"I realised when I was at university, I liked long distance events, and these events started to grow in size.

"When I decided to go to Antarctica, I was told that I don't look like a polar explorer by many people. It made me think about those boundaries - if somebody says something enough times, do you start to believe it?

"The reason I wanted to go to Antarctica was to show that it doesn't matter what you look like, where you're from, what your background is, you can go and achieve anything you want."

Capt Chandi, from Sinfin, is now training for the coast-to-coast trek of more than 1,000 miles, which is expected to take 75 days.

The 33-year-old - also known as "Polar Preet" - will be taking a few months of leave from the Army at the end of the year for her expedition.

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