Cathy O’Dowd

About Cathy

South African mountaineer Cathy O'Dowd is the first woman in the world to have climbed Mount Everest from both its south and north sides, summiting on 25 May 1996 and 29 May 1999. Her first ascent came during the chaotic events that later formed the basis of the Hollywood film Everest — she had been completing a Masters degree in Journalism and working as a university lecturer when she spotted a newspaper advertisement for a place on the 1st South African Everest Expedition. Six months later she was the first South African woman to reach the summit. Three years on, she became the first woman to have climbed the mountain from both sides. She has written a book about those experiences — Just For The Love Of It — and over more than twenty-five years has presented in 46 countries on six continents.

Cathy's most instructive Himalayan experience was not a summit but a failure: as part of a team forging a new route on Nanga Parbat via the Mazeno ridge, she did not reach the top, yet two teammates did — completing a first ascent and winning the prestigious Piolet d'Or. That experience — of leadership, project execution and successful innovation under extreme conditions — she has turned into an interactive case study that places audiences inside the decision-making of a genuinely novel goal. The Professional Speaking Association of UK/Ireland has recognised her with its highest distinction. She lives in Andorra, in the Pyrenees.

Cathy is the right choice for conferences exploring high-performance leadership, project execution and managing risk and uncertainty. Her sessions are story-driven and evidence-grounded — drawn from real expeditions and designed to surface insights applicable to anyone trying to run successful projects and get the best out of people.