Kay Cottee AO

It was a compelling childhood dream and a love for the sea that drove Kay Cottee towards her goal of being the first woman to sail alone, non-stop and unassisted around the world. Kay's sense of sailing adventure was ingrained at an early age. She was aboard her father's yacht when she was just two weeks old and ocean racing by the age of 11. When she left school at 16 she became a stenographer, but within a year she was heading for a working life on the waterfront. This culminated in the building of her yacht First Lady.

On June 5 1988, at age 34, Kay wrote her name into history when she arrived home as the first woman in world history to complete a solo, non-stop and unassisted circumnavigation of the globe. Her voyage took her across 22,000 nautical miles of the world's great oceans and around the five great Capes in the Southern Hemisphere. She did not eat fresh food for six months and woke almost every hour (or less) to check her course, to scan the horizon for ships and trim sails. She faced seas up to 60 feet high, roaring winds over 80 knots and icebergs as big as islands.

Kay's voyage was not an achievement just for herself. She wanted others to benefit and dedicated the voyage to raising funds for the Rev. Ted Noff's Life Education Centres. Three-and-a-half years after returning, Kay reached her goal of raising more than $1 million dollars for the Life Education Centres-raising the money single-handedly by attending more than 500 public functions.

At the end of the voyage the accolades began. Kay was named the 1988 Bicentennial Australian of the Year. Kay also became an Officer of the Order of Australia. She is also the first Australian and second-only recipient of the Cutty Sark Medal presented by the Duke of Edinburgh.

Rotary International awarded Kay its highest honour by making her a Paul Harris Fellow. She became an honorary international Zontian, a life member of the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia and Honorary Life Member of the Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club.

In 1991 Kay joined the board of Australian National Maritime Museum in Sydney and in 1995 she became Chairman - a position she held until 2001.

Kay's homecoming bought new challenges. Her book Kay Cottee-First Lady broke Australian publishing records and she has become one of Australia's most sought after corporate speakers. Kay's audiences are captivated by the simple power of her presentation. Her challenging spirit further enlivens her presentations which are supported by video and slides. Kay encourages members of her audience to undertake the enterprising ventures that will realise their ambitions.