Famous Celebrities in Malaysia (Sharifah Mazlina)

Life’s background

Sharifah Mazlina is the first Asian woman to complete the Pole-to-Pole mission, left for Norway on April 3. In April 2004, she was the first Asian woman to reach the South Pole. Datin Paduka Sharifah Mazlina Syed Abdul Kadir was born on May 23rd 1965 in Malaysia. She received her Honors Bachelor's Degree in Physical Education from the University PUTRA in July 1990. As a student she actively took part in many games and sports events.

The idea of the expedition was brought about in the year 2003, when Mazlina decided to make a World Record by becoming the first Malaysian and the first Asian woman to step into the land of the Antarctic. When she first proposed an expedition to the Antarctic, her whole family had their doubts. She sat down and discussed the matter over with the members of her family and finally succeeded in getting their full support.

The Expedition

On December 9th 2004, Mazlina started her 1100 K.M. long solo expedition from the South Pole to Hercules. She had many obstacles like wind and chilling cold climate standing in her way to realize her dream - becoming the first Asian woman to trek in the Antarctic region. But her strong mental attitude kept her going on her arduous venture. On the 18th day of her journey, she was pushed and blown by the wind. She was dragged for about 40 to 50 meters through the treacherous landscape. She only came to a halt when the ski on her right foot was embedded at a 90-degree angle in the ice. After falling down, she relaxed for a while and setup a tent. She was badly injured and her knees were swollen. Undeterred by this series of unfortunate events, Mazlina continued on her trek.

Once settled in the tent, she called the organizers at the base camp and they asked her if she needed any medical assistance. She insisted that she didn't need any because she didn’t want her journey to be a supported trek. She was determined to make it on her own. On December 30, Mazlina reached her destination, Hercules Inlet, creating records for the fastest time of 22 days, beating an earlier record of 24 days. Mazlina became the first woman in the world to ski-sail in the Antarctic region.

Mazlina used the solo ski-sail trek across Antarctica as a opportunity to study her own mood variations. She used an analysis tool she had devised herself called MEPS to monitor her performance. MEPS stands for mental, emotional physical and social elements that motivate an individual and gauge one’s coping mechanisms. She explains, "When I was injured, I never allowed emotions to rule or have negative feelings."

She has been invited to become a member of an all-women team that plans an international expedition to Greenland in 2011. The condition to be a part of this team is that each member should have visited both the North and South poles. So, Mazlina plans to go to the North Pole between 2007 and 2008. Presently Mazlina is writing three books, two on her experiences in Antarctica and the third is a biography.