DEN OSSE, Netherlands – Dutch teenager Laura Dekker headed for the open sea yesterday after winning a year-long battle with child welfare authorities over her ambition to become the youngest person to sail around the world solo.
Laura (14) departed from the southwestern Netherlands on her 11.5m ketch Guppy, headed initially for Portugal to complete final preparations before starting the solo part of her journey.
A Dutch court ended state supervision of the teenager last week, saying the journey would pose no risk to her social and emotional development.
An experienced sailor, she aims to beat the record for the youngest sailor to circumnavigate the globe.
Her ambition, however, has raised concerns about increasingly younger sailors attempting such voyages. Last month, 16-year-old Abby Sunderland from California was rescued from her vessel 3,700 km off the Australian coast in the Indian Ocean during a round-the-world solo attempt after her mast snapped. – (Reuters)