Evelina Tshabalala

Accomplished marathon runner and mountaineer Evelina Tshabalala isn’t a “give-up” kind of woman. She’s a fighter and a winner. “Even though I’m HIV-positive, I’m stronger than normal people,” she points out. “I do things that most normal people can’t do.”

Like summiting the world’s highest mountains including Mount Kilimanjaro, Mount Elbrus in Russia and Mount Aconcagua in Argentina, the highest peak on Earth outside of the Himalayas.

In 2009 Evelina intends becoming the first HIV-positive person to reach the top of Mount Everest. She also plans on being the first black African woman to summit the highest peak on each of the seven continents as part of her Seven Summits Project.

Evelina Tshabalala, who lives openly with her HIV, is actively involved in educating the children of Imizamo Yethu (an informal settlement in Hout Bay, Cape Town, where she also lives) about HIV and how she manages her illness so that she can climb the world’s highest mountains. This remarkable woman is a shining example of a truly inspirational positive hero. In her own words: “I’m a role-model because I’m proof that life is not finished when you have HIV. I want to be an example for people in South Africa”.

Evelina is a Founder Member of Positive Heroes.