Clare O'Leary

Clare O'Leary (born 1972) is an Irish gastroenterologist, mountain climber and adventurer. She was the first Irish woman to climb Mount Everest and complete the Seven Summits.

Career Medicine O'Leary developed an interest in medicine, and cancer in particular, when her uncle died from lung cancer during her childhood. After graduating from University College Cork, she spent over ten years training and working at the Cork University Hospital. She also became the first Irish woman to ascend the Himalayan peak Ama Dablam and to climb the Seven Summits—the highest mountains on each continent. this attempt will be O'Leary's fourth and O'Shea's second. They hope to be the first Irish people to reach the North Pole.

In 2013, the railway path between Bandon and Innishannon in County Cork was named the Dr Clare O'Leary Walk to commemorate her achievements.

In December 2020, O'Leary was awarded the Mountaineering Ireland Lyman Medal in recognition of her mountaineering and exploration achievements.

Personal life O'Leary lives in Clonmel, and is in a relationship with Mike O'Shea, with whom she frequently partners for her expeditions.