Six soldiers aiming to raise £500,00 for charity on South Pole odyssey

The soldiers will split into two teams and retrace the footsteps of Captain Robert Scott and Norwegian Roald Amundsen in their perilous trek to the South Pole.

A century on from the two great men’s 920-mile ordeal across the Antarctic to the bottom of the Earth, Lieutenant Colonel Henry Worsley and Warrant Officer Class 2 Mark Langridge will lead their teams across two routes.

The teams will leave at exactly the same time next month from different parts of the Union Glacier on an adventure estimated to last about 60 days.

As well as commemorating the race’s centenary, the adventurers aim to raise £500,000 for centres caring for injured service personnel.

Scott and his crew were in despair when they reached their destination – finding a Norwegian flag which Amundsen had left five weeks earlier.

Scott and two members of his team died in the cold as they tried to retrace their steps back – Amundsen was already sailing home at this point.

Col Worsley will follow the Norwegian’s steps as he has already followed Capt Scott’s.

In 2008 he battled the punishing elements – plunging temperatures of -52C – to journey to the southernmost point in the world.

He and his team-mates will fly to Chile from where they will go on to the Antarctic – and if he completes the epic task will become the first person to complete both routes, a feat he described as the “holy grail”.

Col Worsley said: “I am very excited about it. I am also full of apprehension. There’s a lot of worry about whether someone will get injured and how you are going to get them out, or whether I can physically cope with the journey again. It really took a toll on me last time.”

He added: “The beauty of these journeys is that we are following in someone’s footsteps so I can read their diaries each night. I will imagine that Amundsen will be there beside me with his dogs and sled.”