Saray is the first black African woman to ski to the South Pole and summit Mt Everest 66 years after the mountain was first summited in 1953.
Saray is an award-winning mountaineer and a business executive with over 18 years’ experience in industry leading blue-chip companies which drive innovation and change both locally and internationally.
Through mountaineering and @summitswithapurpose, she has raised over R1.5 million towards literacy and education in Africa.
As a Mandela Libraries ambassador and a social entrepreneur Saray continues to push boundaries both professionally and in mountaineering.
You can listen to Saray on the Tough Girl Podcast, new episodes are every Tuesday at 7am UK time!
Listen to Saray Now!
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Show notes
Who is Saray
What life was like growing up
Being 1 of 7 girls
Her passion for education
The sky is the limit
Being a tomboy
Being part of a community
Why education is so important
Why the world is a global village
Losing her older sister
Wanting to climb Mount Kilimanjaro
Making the decision to climb the 7 summits (the 7 highest mountains on every continent)
How it evolved into the Explorers Grand Slam
Summits with a Purpose
Encouraging other people to get outdoors
Finding a mentor
Needing to train differently for every adventure
Her first Mt Everest summit attempt in 2014
Struggling to find sponsorship and self funding the adventure
Making the decision to go back Mt Everest in 2015
Becoming more committed
Being in an earthquake in 2015 on Mt Everest
Going to pray
Almost dying in 2016 after a mountain biking accident put her in a coma for 3 weeks
Recognising and celebrating the small wins
Getting 100m from the summit
Being left to die in the dead zone on Mt Everest
Starting to question everything
Risk versus reward
Figure out the why
Figure out what you can do differently and go back
Deciding to go back in 2019
Feeling invincible and ready to take on anything
Failing forward
Leaning how to ski at the South Pole
Only being able to trust her compass
Mental resilience and determination during challenges
Coping with Covid
Social Media
Website https://www.saraykhumalo.com
Facebook @saraykhumaloSpeaker
Instagram @saraykhumalo
Twitter @saraykhumalo
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