Background

Great Britain has a proud tradition in the field of polar exploration. Yet when it comes to polar firsts, Norway holds a firm lead:

First to North Pole	USA (1908)
First to South Pole	Norway (1911)
First unsupported to South Pole	Norway (1993)
First unsupported to North Pole	Norway (1994)
First unsupported return/crossing North Pole	Canada/Russia (1995)
First unsupported return/crossing South Pole	Unclaimed

North Pole (from Land):

By all means	193
Unsupported:	40
Solo and unsupported:	2

North Pole return/traverse:

By all means:	39
Unsupported:	4

South Pole (from coast):

By all means:	202
Unsupported:	69
Solo and unsupported:	8

South Pole return/traverse:

By all means:	40
Unsupported:	None

In comparison, over 3,000 people have reached the summit of Mount Everest, of which 144 have done so without using supplementary oxygen.

Note: As well as being re-supplied en-route, 'Support' in the North has typically been the use of dogs or skidoos. In the South, tractors were also a historical feature but parafoils (kites) are now commonly used.

Expedition statistics reproduced with the kind permission of www.adventurestats.com, as at 17/04/08.