100 Women: Astronaut Peggy Whitson on being told she'd never go to space

Despite being told to give up her dream of going to space, Peggy Whitson persisted and is now a record-breaking astronaut.

"Folks should push themselves to do even more than they think they can because they are capable," she says.

BBC 100 Women names 100 influential and inspirational women around the world every year. In 2017, we're challenging them to tackle four of the biggest problems facing women today - the glass ceiling, female illiteracy, harassment in public spaces and sexism in sport.

With your help, they'll be coming up with real-life solutions and we want you to get involved with your ideas. Find us on Facebook, external, Instagram, external and Twitter, external and use #100Women