Last year, a Dutch court ruled that Laura Dekker was too young to sail around the world by herself. Laura is now 14, and she is on her way to Portugal on her yacht, Guppy. In September, Laura will begin her official attempt to break the record for the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe sailing solo. The current record holder, Jessica Watson, broke the record in May at the age of 16.

Would you want to sail around the world alone?

Read more about Laura in the Associated Press article.

See a video of Laura on the the BBC.

Photograph by Bas Czerwinski, AP

Photograph by Bart Muhl/AP

Laura Dekker is a girl with a dream–to be the youngest person to circumnavigate (sail around) the world alone in her yacht, Guppy. Laura isn’t new to sailing. She was born on a boat in New Zealand, and was sailing solo on lakes when she was six years old. She sailed across the English Channel to England and back at her father’s insistence that she prove herself before tackling the open ocean. Laura is 13 years old.

A Dutch court has ruled that Laura is too young to make the trip alone, and has placed her under state supervision for two months to make sure she stays on dry land.

Do you think 13 is too young to sail solo around the world? How old do you think someone should be before sailing such a huge distance alone?

Read more about Laura Dekker on the BBC.

Read about a man’s attempt to circumnavigate the world on his own power on National Geographic Kids.