Tough Girl Podcast Dr. Memnia Theodorou : First and only Cypriot to have sailed from the UK to Australia as part of Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.
In need of a break from her career as a dentist and needing to go on an adventure, Memnia signed up to take part in the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.
Memnia only had limited sailing knowledge prior to the race and had never been out at sea for more than a few hours. For that reason she had originally only signed up for the first leg of the race, crossing the Atlantic, travelling from London to Rio de Janeiro (28 day at sea).
During the crossing, she fell in love with the sport and the sea, so she carried on signing up for more legs. She continued sailing through some of the most treacherous weather systems and isolated areas of the planet, facing not only the extremes of weather, from boiling to freezing temperatures, but also life threatening situations. She sailed to Cape Town, Albany, Sydney, Hobart, till she reached her final destination, Airlie Beach, Australia - 5 months later. She has covered more than 18,000 Nautical Miles in total, becoming the first and only Cypriot to have sailed from the UK to Australia on a racing sailing boat.
Today, Memnia splits her time between England and Cyprus, combining dentistry with her love of adventurous activities, including sailing, scuba diving, trekking etc. She has been invited on various stages to share her story, including TEDxNicosia and has evolved as a motivational speaker and workshop trainer, inspiring others through her unique experience to go after their dreams and to reconsider their own lives. She has just completed an all-female expedition (Led by Felicity Aston) trekking on iced river in the remote Zanskar Valley, in Jammu and Kashmir.
Show notes
- Memnia introduces herself
- Growing up in Cyprus
- Deciding to sail around the world
- The unfortunate events that happened in her life which led to making this decision
- Having no regrets
- Thinking about doing the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race when she was 31
- Deciding to take the first step and send in her application
- How she funded the race
- Forget about her house deposit!
- What training was involved
- The next steps
- Her mindset and mental preparation
- The challenges of being on the boat
- What the start line was like!
- Crossing the English Channel
- What life was like on the boat
- Figuring out which position suited each person
- How the break down of the shifts worked
- How you occupy time while on the deck
- The power of thinking time
- The route and taking part in 4 legs
- Only planning on going to Rio… but ending up in Australia
- Finding out she was the first Cypriot to sail from the UK to Australia
- Having her story go viral & getting a sponsor for the final leg
- Reflecting back on the journey
- The memories that stand our for her - the positive and the not so positive
- Spending 5 months on the water
- What happened after the end of the race… what was next
- Being exhausted at the end and needing time to rest and recover
- Deciding to make some changes to her life
- Deciding on what makes her happy
- Doing a TEDx talk!
- What Memnia has learned about fear
- Coming back from an all female expedition with Felicity Aston
- What she learned about leadership from Felicity
- How you can following along with Memnia on social media
Social Media
Website: www.memniatheodorou.com
Facebook:@MemniaTheodorou
Instagram: @memniatheodorou
Twitter: @MemniaTh
Memnia also has a newsletter where she share monthly inspiration and motivation to "have the courage to lead the life you've always wanted" Sign up —>> HERE!!