Nine-year-old sails from Antigua to Montserrat

Yves Cabai Martin, aged nine, sailed more than 40 kilometres on a small, single-handed sailing dinghy this February.

It took him nine hours to travel the distance from Pearns Bay in Antigua to Little Bay in Montserrat, where he was welcomed by Governor Sarah Tucker.

Yves Cabai Martin (right), aged nine, sailed from Antigua to Montserrat. (Photo: Montserrat Governor’s Office)

“It was a real pleasure to welcome Yves Cabai Martin to Montserrat this evening,” the governor wrote in a Facebook post on 1 February.

“This nine-year-old young man plotted his route from Antigua to Montserrat, packed his supplies and with his own radio comms, sailed on his Optimist for nine hours.

“Well done to Yves’ mum and dad for being his support boat and ensuring he managed the crossing safely.”

According to an article in Antigua Nice, Yves grew up in the London, UK, and started sailing in Antigua Yacht Club when he was seven.

“His parents, Daria Cabai and Valentin Martin, are immensely proud of his determination to see this passage through and that he had navigated the course from aspiration to accomplishment,” the magazine site says.