A 14-year old Dutch sailor is due to embark on a solo journey around the world on her yacht Guppy starting from Portimão marina.
No details have been given of a departure date, but Laura Dekker, who was born aboard a yacht on September 20, 1995 in New Zealand, expects the adventure to take two years.
She and her family have been subjected to a great deal of criticism and even faced legal challenges to prevent her from undertaking the voyage.
Child protection authorities tried to stop the trip but Laura Dekker achieved victory in court and aims to complete this challenge before turning 17 on September 20, 2012.
She has been at the marina in Portimão since August 15 and the first stage of the journey is to reach Madeira.
She said: “I am not really afraid. I am very happy to do this journey.”
