Expedition team members

The team members have the best possible qualifications to transform this journey into something more than just a skiing outing to the South Pole. We represent a rare combination of theoretical knowledge and hands-on experience of expeditions – and we wish to use this ski trip through parts of the world’s least studied continent as a showcase to share what we know about research, skiing, adventuring, and polar history.

The skier

Vegard Ulvang (born 1963). One of Norway’s all-time greatest skiers. Vegard has 14 World Championship and Olympic medals and has won many competitions in the World Cup. He has also undertaken a series of expeditions in various parts of the world. More recently, he has made a mark as a dedicated proponent of environmental protection.

The researcher

Jan-Gunnar Winther (born 1962). Director of the Norwegian Polar Institute. Jan-Gunnar has a PhD in polar hydrology from the Norwegian Institute of Technology and has been involved in polar research for 20 years. His specialty is climate studies of glaciers and sea ice. In 2007-2008 he led the Norwegian-American research traverse to the South Pole, a project under the International Polar Year.

The adventurer

Stein P. Aasheim (born 1951). The nestor of Norwegian adventurers after having scaled peaks (including the first Norwegian climb up Mt. Everest), paddled rivers, traversed through deserts and jungles and sailed the seven seas. Stein has published a dozen books and created many television programmes.

The historian

Harald Dag Jølle (born 1971). Polar historian at the Norwegian Polar Institute. Harald Dag was co-editor of a three-part reference work on Norwegian polar history (Norsk polarhistorie) and recently published a biography of Fridtjof Nansen for the publishing house Gyldendal Norsk Forlag. Like the others, he is no novice to long ski trips and steep mountains.