Out of Africa then in the Sydney to Hobart

Andrew Mathieson
A COUPLE of carefree Sudanese refugees who live for the hip-hop scene will be the first Africans to compete in the Sydney to Hobart yacht race.
The experience will be a remarkable change in fortune for the Geelong teenagers who lived at an Ethiopian refugee camp most of their lives.
Nineteen-year-old cousins Duol Yang and Gambella Gatkouth have also never been on a boat before.
The teenagers will have 11 days to gather their sea legs with a maiden voyage on the Young Endeavour, a replica of Captain James Cook’s famous ship, departing tomorrow from Port Lincoln for Geelong.
North Geelong Secondary College classmate Longdy Pich, who fled Cambodia, will join the Sudanese pair on the Sydney to Hobart.
Victoria Police multicultural liaison officer Paul Lees, who will accompany the trio during the 63rd annual race, said their place in history and the enormity of the task was finally sinking in.
“They didn’t initially (realise it) but they do now because I explained it all to them,” he said.
“They’re smart boys as well because they did hesitate briefly when I asked them and they said ‘This is a big thing you ask of us’.”
The three friends have built a strong bond since they were among 11 young refugees who turned up at a pathway program camp at Anglesea in September.
Snr Const Lees said they displayed “outstanding” leadership and were among six chosen to sail on the Endeavour program and among three selected to participate in one of the world’s premier ocean yacht races.
Duol, standing with a nervous smile, tried to take the trip in his stride.
“I think it’s pretty awesome,” he said casually.
“I know it’s pretty big now.”
Gambella just nodded and muttered: “Yeah, it’s awesome”.
Around-the-world adventurer Jesse Martin will hand out some tips and speak to them about how to seize the moment.
But Mr Lees was confident the boys, who know all about adversity, would be able to handle the waves crashing into the hull and the sleepless nights.
“Having got to know them I don’t think they will have any trouble adjusting,” he said.
“Both (African boys) spent 16 years of their lives in a refugee camp in Ethiopia – they’re just going to grasp the opportunity with both hands.”