An Irishman made history in January 2004 when he became the first disabled person to have conquered both the North and the South Pole.
He led a team into Antarctica and reached the South Pole over a year ago, having conquered the North Pole in April 2002.
This is a remarkable challenge for the ablest of explorers but even more so for Michael McGrath who has muscular dystrophy, a muscle-wasting disease.
Since being diagnosed at 17 years of age with the disease and despite having lost about 65 per cent of his muscle bulk, he still managed to reach the two poles.
McGrath was a keynote speaker at a muscular dystrophy research conference held earlier this month in Dublin.
He described his two polar expeditions and also talked about his work as executive director and co-founder of the Muscle Help Foundation. Its goal is to see a world free of muscle disorders.
He lobbies companies to do more about ensuring access provision for those who use wheelchairs or walking aids.
He also argues that service-providers prepared to invest in training and accessible facilities for consumers requiring additional assistance would see a return on their investment.
Other speakers at the meeting included Dr Ian Graham of the Biomedical Sciences Centre, Royal Holloway, University of London and Joseph Irwin, honorary director of research with the Jennifer Trust for Spinal Muscular Atrophy.