The team reached the South Pole in the middle of the afternoon on 28th December 2002. The American scientists based at the pole were 17 hours ahead and so were reluctant to get out of bed and wave hello in the minus 30-degree temperatures.

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In that moment they accomplished what only 85 people have ever done - and somehow managed to be the fastest. Tom and Patrick were the youngest Britons to reach the pole, and Andrew was the first ever African. However, as they had skied for 35 hours non-stop by the time they arrived, they quickly went to sleep.
The 1050 km journey had taken 46 days and had been filled with unforgettable experiences. The first few days on the ice had led them over crevass fields where Tom and Patrick managed to scare themselves witless by falling into the gaping holes. Tom and Andrew had also managed to get frostbite on their faces during this time and at the end of day two , all the team wrote in their diaries that there was no way they would make it. However, as the terrain levelled out and their 165lb sleds got lighter with each day of food being co n sumed, their pace and spirits picked up.

At the resupply point a month into the journey, they realised that they were making good time and decided to go super-light for the second half of the expedition, and try for the team record. Then the problems started. Tom's pace dropped dramatically after damaging his shoulder falling on a patch of blue ice. He also suffered from the altitude, making an evacuation attempt seem likely as he got weaker and weaker the higher they went. They took the weight from his sled, but things started to look pretty desperate. However, a weather front came over them, changing the direction of the wind and finally allowing them to use their kites. After some near-suicidal incidents they managed to get the kites under control and made excellent mileage south.

Then onto the high polar plateau and with the South Pole in sight, a very, very long night of skiing. Apart from skiing in the wrong direction for a while as the compasses went beserk, the team finally managed to see the dome of the American Station at 8am and realised that they were soon going to run out of South.

SEE MORE PICTURES FROM THE EXPEDITION IN THE GALLERY

READ ABOUT THE TEAM'S TRAINING TALES IN NEW ZEALAND