Sydney - A 16-year-old Australian bidding to become the youngest ever around-the-world solo sailor limped back to Australia's east coast on her 10.4-metre yacht Wednesday after colliding at night with a 63,000-ton cargo ship. Jessica Watson was uninjured, but the mast of her pink-hulled boat was snapped just a day into her planned eight-month voyage. She is on the Gold Coast waiting for repairs before setting out again.
"The big thing for me is I came through the whole thing feeling confident," Jessica said. "I won't play it down - it was a pretty scary incident - but it was great to know what to do after years of planning and learning."
Jessica was on her way to Sydney for the official start of her attempt to be the youngest person to sail solo, non-stop and unassisted around the world.
Her fibreglass boat, Ella's Pink Lady, was rammed from behind early Wednesday by the Hong Kong-registered Silver Yang bulk carrier in a busy shipping lane near Brisbane.
"It could have happened to anyone," she told reporters. "I'm unlucky, I suppose, but you also learn from it."
Australian Transport Safety Bureau spokesman Michael Squires said the home-schooled girl was lucky to be alive.
"A ship of that size, which is large and fully loaded, tends not to be very forgiving in the case of a collision with a small fibreglass boat," Squires said.
Jessica had initially set her sights on a record set 10 years ago by fellow Australian Jesse Martin, who at 18 circumnavigated the globe on his own. Martin's record was broken last month by 17-year- old Briton Mike Perham.
Jessica's parents have been criticized over the record attempt. The Australian Family Association's John Morrissey led the chorus of complaint.
"I'm a secondary teacher, and I have been teaching 15-year-old girls for 42 years, and I'd be amazed if any of them could cope with something like that," Morrissey said of the intended voyage.
"It's given us a lot of confidence that she can deal with fairly ugly situations," Julie Watson said of her daughter. "She's all smiles and still lots of energy and looking very positively at the whole incident. She's incredible."
The arguments against Jessica's ambitions mirrored those in the Netherlands, where there is a legal battle over the circumnavigation plans of 13-year-old Laura Dekker.
Jessica has been championed by seasoned adventurer Don McIntyre, who has lent her his boat Pink Lady for the attempt.
"We can't afford to overprotect our kids," he said. "They need to find themselves, challenge the natural world and understand what it is to minimize risk and make good decisions."
