After seven months at sea, an Australian teen on Thursday was just two days away from reaching the finish line in her bid to become the youngest person to sail solo, nonstop and unassisted around the world.

Thousands are expected to line Sydney Harbour on Saturday to offer a hero's welcome to 16-year-old Jessica Watson, who has battled 40-foot (12-meter) waves, multiple knockdowns and critics who called her too immature and inexperienced for the treacherous journey.
Many thought she couldn't, and her parents faced withering criticism from those who believed allowing a teenager to attempt such a feat was foolish, insane — even borderline criminal. But the couple repeatedly defended their decision, even after their daughter, who has been sailing since she was 8, collided with a merchant ship during a test run.
Watson, from Buderim, north of Brisbane in Queensland state, sailed out of Sydney on Oct. 18. She traveled northeast through the South Pacific and across the equator, then south to Cape Horn at the tip of South America, across the Atlantic Ocean to South Africa, through the Indian Ocean and around southern Australia. She has survived on prepackaged meals, the occasional freshly caught fish and a steady supply of chocolate.
Another Australian, Jesse Martin, who was 18 when he completed the journey in 1999, holds the current record for the youngest person to sail around the world solo, nonstop and unassisted. But Watson's feat will not be considered an official world record, because the World Speed Sailing Record Council discontinued its "youngest" category.

Sixteen-year-old American Abby Sunderland of Marina del Ray, California, launched her own solo round-the-world bid in January. In May, she had to pull into port in South Africa for boat repairs, ending her nonstop attempt. She still plans to try to complete her voyage.