Aussie teen Watson enters home stretch

An Australian teenager aiming to become the youngest person to sail solo and unassisted around the world was days away from completing her goal yesterday, after battling the worst conditions of her trip.

After completing more than 20,000 nautical miles, schoolgirl Jessica Watson had to fight harsh weather while sailing around Tasmania, with 12 metre-high swells and 55-knot winds buffeting her boat.

"The last two weeks were the most difficult," Watson's manager Andrew Fraser told AFP.

"That region of ocean is quite notorious for its treacherous conditions. We are just relieved that Jessica has managed to safely negotiate her way through."

The dangerous weather has taken its toll on the teenager, who on her blog reported sore muscles and bruises after her 33-foot bright pink yacht "Ella's Pink Lady" fought through the huge waves.

In her latest entry yesterday, the 16-year-old said she had rounded Tasmania's South-East Cape and was now sailing north towards Sydney.

"I never expected rounding Tasmania to be much of a big deal, but all of last week's struggles made finally getting around the (South East) Cape 10 times sweeter," Watson wrote.

Watson is less than 1,600 kilometres from the finish line of her 23,000 nautical mile (38,000 km) solo round-the-world trip, non-stop and unassisted.