14 April 2005:
Young modern "Phileas Fogg" returns after his non-stop sailing solo around the world.
After having sailed for more than 200 days non-stop and "en solitaire" around the world with as only companion his dog Sammy, Mark Slats (Dutch sailor) is finally expected to return to the little harbour of Scheveningen, in the Netherlands, this weekend. There started his sailing solo on a greyish afternoon last September. Mark is not a green sailor as he already realised another sailing solo in 2002 from Brisbane in Australia to the Netherlands. OmniSTAR BV had the privilege to sponsor Mark with "SeaSTAR Asset Monitoring" equipment to enable the tracking of the Cornelia, Mark's boat. With his young 28 years, Mark's objective was double: make a difference by becoming the youngest non-stop solo sailer around the world but beyond that personal record, also help the charitable institution oneMen, which since 65 years works for the rights and wellfare of people in countries in development. oneMen believes that one man can make a difference in the life of many... this spoke to Mark and that is why he decided to support them.