Dr. Pushpa Chandra is a 58-year-old Vancouver-based naturopathic doctor and extreme ultra-marathoner who was born in Fiji to Indo-Nepalese parents. To celebrate her 50th birthday in 2008, she commemorated by running marathons and ultra-marathons on all seven continents—including the Mount Everest Marathon, the Amsterdam 100, the Antarctica 100 and the Geographic North Pole Marathon at temperatures below -40 degrees. She was the second female, and first Canadian, to run in the Antarctica 100, where she’s held the Female World Record for four years, and she was the Overall Female Winner of the 2009 North Pole Marathon.

Today she continues her passion for running in extreme places, including two 250 km self-supported stage races in the Gobi Desert and in Madagascar. Pushpa has completed over 100 marathons and ultra-marathons.

About her presentation:
At age 50, Dr. Chandra began her journey to complete a marathon on Mount Everest. In the process, she fell quite ill and it empowered her to push herself even further— to run marathons and ultras on all seven continents in that same year.

“While I consider myself a talented runner, I realized that my passion developed when I was 5 or 6 years old. I used to run to school for 8 km each way instead of taking the bus, and I’d use that bus money to buy treats. So running became a very rewarding experience for me,” says Dr. Chandra. “I hope that a person out there can take something away from my presentation that will then belong to them. Regardless of adversities, it’s not about falling, it’s about how you can get up and go again.”

Read our full interview with Dr. Chandra:

MULTIPLICITY 2016: DR PUSHPA CHANDRA ON OVERCOMING MENTAL AND PHYSICAL BARRIERS
Dr. Pushpa Chandra is a 58-year-old Vancouver-based naturopathic doctor and extreme ultra-marathoner who was born in Fiji to Indo-Nepalese parents. To celebrate her 50th birthday in 2008, she commemorated by running marathons and ultra-marathons on all seven continents—including the Mount Everest Marathon, the Amsterdam 100, the Antarctica 100 and the Geographic North Pole Marathon at temperature below -40 degrees… Read more

ABOUT MULTIPLICITY
MULTIPLICITY — Elevation. Imagination. Inspiration.
Presented by Mountain Life Media – A special flagship fundraiser for the Spearhead Huts Project. Presented by Helly Hansen.

Like a TEDTalk® on adrenalin, MULTIPLICITY is visual storytelling at its most adventurous. Delivered by eight unique world-class athletes, explorers and outdoor personalities — this one-night, packed-house multimedia extravaganza is designed to resonate as much as it entertains with a mix of film, photography and truly engaging narratives.

A flagship fundraiser for the Spearhead Huts Project, the event premiered in 2013 and was immediately pegged “the most underrated night” at Whistler’s World Ski & Snowboard Festival. The secret is out now and MULTIPLICITY has grown into one of the crowd favourites in the WSSF‘s eclectic arts line-up, and is also considered one of Whistler’s most inspiring events…. Read more