1988: Australian sailor, Kay Cottee, became the first woman in history to sail solo non-stop around the globe. On November 29, 1987, she set sail from Sydney Harbour, AU, on her 38-foot yacht, Blackmores First Lady, and returned on June 5, 1988, after covering more than 22,100 nautical miles in 189 days at sea. When she finished, she was 34 years old...she raised over $1M for the Rev. Ted Noffs' Life Education Program, was made an officer of the Order of Australia and was then awarded the highest honour of all - named the Bicentennial Australian of the Year.

"My life flashed before my eyes for the second time in an hour as I was washed just over the top of the leeward safety railing before my harness lines pulled me up short. I held my breath under the water until my lungs felt they would burst, willing my lovely to right herself and praying that the two harness lines did not give way. She took her time, but true to form gracefully rose once again, this time with me dangling over the side."

Her numerous records include: 1st woman to complete a solo non-stop circumnavigation; 1st woman to circumnavigate non-stop west to east, south of the five southern most capes; fastest time for a solo circumnavigation by a woman; fastest speed (average speed 4.87 miles per hour during her round-the-world voyage) for a solo circumnavigation by a woman; longest period alone at sea by a woman; and the greatest non-stop distance covered by a solo woman. They are all the more remarkable given that she was born with a congenital heart defect, causing her occasional fatigue.

To this day, Kay Cottee has inspired generations of female sailors across the globe.