'True Spirit,' a Netflix documentary, chronicles the 210-day journey that Australian sailor Jessica Watson took from October 2009 to May 2010. At 16, she became one of the youngest people to complete a solo global circumnavigation without assistance, covering approximately 23,000 nautical miles. Laura Dekker, a Dutch sailboat, also circumnavigated the world solo at about the same age as her Australian counterpart.
Laura's beginning at sea was enthralled when she was born in New Zealand in September 1995, during her parents' sailing excursion. She spent the first five years of her life sailing, and she married her father in the Netherlands after their parents separated in 2001. She completed a solo round trip to England in 2009, and she announced her solo global circumnavigation.
Laura faced severe opposition from government authorities due to the dangers involved and her parents' joint custody. She set out to sail the globe in August 2010 at the age of 14. She inspired many young sailors around the world when she returned in January 2012.
What is the age of Laura Dekker?
Laura Dekker became the youngest person to sail the world alone between August 2010 and January 2012; she was awarded with a number of honorary awards when she returned home at the age of sixteen. These include the American Yacht Club's Challenger Award in 2012, and the Ocean Cruising Club's 2013 Award of Merit in Whangarei, New Zealand.
Laura was nominated for the prestigious Conny van Rietschoten Prize, the highest honor for Dutch sailors, in February 2015. She was the youngest person to earn the Yachtmaster Ocean 200gt Certificate in 2011 before settling down in Whangarei, New Zealand.
Laura decided to continue working in the education field and co-founded the Laura Dekker World Sailing Foundation in 2018. Participants get a chance to meet Laura on her sailboat and learn about the ropes of life on the water.
Laura appeared in the critically acclaimed 2013 documentary 'Maidentrip,' directed by Jillian Schlesinger, which chronicles her circumnavigation journey.
Laura co-starred in 'Atlas' and 'Expeditie Poolcirkel,' an expedition-based Dutch reality series, earning the first place in the latter. She has also co-authored the 2014 novel 'One Girl, One Dream,' which chronicles her journey to fulfill her sailing dream.
Laura Dekker World Sailing Foundation is a well-known boat builder with a sailing background similar to hers. The couple has two boys together, one of whom is a promising young sailor. Besides, she spends a lot of time sailing in the open water.
