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ALE cheered us on. I beat Johan by 10 metres. He grabbed me in a big
bear hug and called me whatever is Swedish for 'bugger!' The emotion
burst from each of us, and we cried in each other's arms.
I was greeted by the officials here, and I broke down. A few min-
utes later, when I ran, holding the Red Cross flag aloft, along an avenue
of the flags of all the nations that have ventured to this remote place,
I cried again. And I blubbed when I planted the flag in the ice right by
the official South Pole.
I went straight to a tent to bathe my swollen hands and feet in
a bowl of hot water. When the station doctor inspected and treated
my feet, my blistered face and lips, my crook right knee and all my
other pains and sprains, I cried once again, not from the pain but from
gratitude. Then she brought me a mug of hot chocolate and a bowl of
hot beef stew. Heaven! After a quick glass of champagne it was time
to talk to the
Today
show's Ben Fordham, followed by interviews with
Radio 2GB, the
Daily Telegraph
,
The
Australian
,
The
Age
and other
newspapers.
Now, writing this entry in my diary, I am still weeping. The
