In this episode Tansy Baigent speaks with author, mountaineer, physiotherapist and mum to three, Jo Gambi, about the challenges she has faced throughout her life; from her husband developing cancer twice and facing an illness that almost killed him; climbing Everest; hiking/sledding the seven summits and both poles; and the struggles of having a son born with a rare neuro-behavioural disorder. Jo is an inspiration to talk to as her approach is always one of energy, vitality, love, life and Spirit.
In this episode Tansy Baigent speaks with author, mountaineer, physiotherapist and mum to three, Jo Gambi, about the challenges she has faced throughout her life, how she has coped with such extraordinarily hard circumstances, and of course the moment she stood at the top of Everest (with her husbands hand in one hand, and her pink frisbee in the other!)
Jo was already an experienced rock climber when she met Rob, an Australian with a fear of heights who had never climbed before. They married in 1996 but in 2000 their world fell apart when Rob was diagnosed with cancer for the second time.
Determined to live life to the full, after 18 months of intensive cancer treatment Jo and Rob decided to take on the greatest challenge of all, to climb Everest.
From there they inadvertently set a string of records.
In 2005 Rob and Jo Gambi became the first married couple to climb the ‘7 Summits’ (the highest peak on each continent) and ski to the Poles. Rob was also the first Australian, and Jo the first female, to achieve this.
Rob is the first cancer survivor to climb the ‘7 Summits’, and Jo is the second British woman to have climbed Everest’s North/North East Ridge.
Together Rob and Jo hold the Guinness World Record for the fastest (and first) '7 Summits' ascent (both lists) by a married couple, and Jo holds the Guinness World Record for the fastest ‘7 Summits' ascent by a female.
Jo has written about their adventures in her inspirational book Holding On, and as a speaker is passionate about encouraging, challenging and empowering her audiences
Rob and Jo have three children; Ben, Sam and Jasmine. Sam was born with a rare complex neuro-behavioural disorder called Prader Willi Syndrome.
Jo is an inspiration to talk to as her approach is always one of energy, vitality, love, life and Spirit.
Find more information about Jo at her website: http://www.robandjogambi.com/index.php
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