Mark Inglis
About
The first double amputee to reach the summit of Mount Everest, Mark Inglis is also a mountaineer, researcher, winemaker and a motivational speaker.
Mark began his work as a professional mountaineer in 1979 as a search and rescue mountaineer for Mount Cook National Park.
In 1982 Mark Inglis and his climbing partner Philip Doole got stuck in a snow cave on Mount Cook for 13 and half days due to an intense blizzard resulting in both men losing their legs below the knee due to terrible frostbite.
He returned to Mt. Cook in 2002 and reached the summit successfully on 7 January, after a previous attempt was unsuccessful. The summit assault was documented by the film No Mean Feat: The Mark Inglis Story in January 2002.
In the year 2002, on Queen's Birthday & Golden Jubilee Honors, Mark was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to persons with disabilities.
On 27 September 2004, he successfully climbed Mount Cho Oyu the 6th highest mountain in the world with three others, becoming only the second double amputee to summit a mountain greater than 8,000 metres in height.
After 40 days of climbing, finally on 15th May 2006, Mark became the first ever double amputee to reach the summit of Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world. His expedition was filmed for the Discovery Channel series Everest: Beyond the Limit.
Mark has got a first-class honours degree in human biochemistry and molecular biology, and has also worked in a medical research group looking at new ways in detecting Leukaemia.
He also made a career in winemaking and has been a winemaker for over 18 years now in New Zealand.
Mark is the founding trustee for Limbs4All Charitable Trust, which is committed to helping some of the 400 million disabled people within New Zealand and worldwide, and is also an ambassador for Outward Bound amongst various other projects and charities.
Mark has created a sports food company - PeakFuel, a range of sports drinks and energy gels.
Mark has Authored four books namely ‘No Mean Feat’, ‘To the Max’, ‘Off the Front Foot’, ‘No Legs on Everest’ and 'High Tech Legs on Everest’.
Awards and Accomplishments
Awards and Accomplishments
- NZ 1st Paralympic Cycling Medal – Silver, Sydney 2000
- First and only double amputee to summit Mount Everest (15 May 2006).
- Doctor of Natural Resources, honoris causa
- Officer of the NZ Order of Merit (ONZM)
- Patron of Cambodia Trust NZ, NZ/Nepalese Foundation
- Internationally awarded winemaker for over 18 years.
Why Mark Inglis ?
Challenge and attitude is at the core of all growth and Mark is truly an epitome of challenge and attitude. Mark is a paralympic silver medalist who also works as a research scientist, winemaker, entrepreneur, and author; his diversity is commendable. As the only double amputee who has stood on the summit of Mt Everest, who else can truly define the often used saying, “Attitude determines your Altitude”.
