Presidential salute for Pole explorers

IRELAND’S intrepid South Pole explorers were last night given a special reception by President Mary McAleese at Áras an Uachtaráin to honour their accomplishment.

The four-person team, who made history by becoming the first Irish expedition to reach the South Pole, have also been invited to Stormont by the North’s Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness.

The team, led by veteran adventurer Pat Falvey, were given a rousing welcome by hundreds of supporters on Thursday when they arrived in Cork after their 58-day polar trek.

Beyond Endurance was the first Irish expedition to successfully trek across Antartica to the South Pole.

The squad arrived at their remote goal on January 8, after journeying 1,140km through some of the harshest conditions on the planet.

President McAleese described the expedition as “particularly poignant”, coming 100 years to the month since the Irish-born Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton set off on the first of his ill-fated attempts to reach the South Pole. She congratulated Pat Falvey, Dr Clare O’Leary, who became the first Irish woman to make it to the South Pole, Dublin IT consultant Shaun Menzies, 42, and 36-year-old Jonathon Bradshaw for their “remarkable achievement.”

A date for the visit to Stormont has yet to be finalised. “We can confirm that Mr McGuinness did send a letter [of invitation] and that he would be happy to have them in Stormont,” a spokeswoman for the Deputy First Minister’s office said.

Mr Falvey said he was honoured and privileged to have been invited to Stormont. Exploration is a great form of unification, and it has been in Ireland for many years, he said.

“Both sides of the divide have worked together in relation to promoting peace and tranquillity and world knowledge and I am so privileged to be asked to a part of the country that I have such a great fondness for,” he said.