After ten months at sea, an extraordinary international sailing expedition is about to reach its final destination. The “Fraternidade-2025/2026” (Portuguese for “Brotherhood”) will cross the finish line in Salvador, Brazil on February 28, marking the completion of a remarkable journey that celebrated 20 years of the BRICS alliance.
The yacht’s two captains—Russian sailor Sergey Shcherbakov and Ukrainian-born Brazilian Aleixo Belov—piloted their vessel across approximately 24,000 nautical miles (45,000 kilometers), navigating through some of the planet’s most challenging waters without the assistance of icebreakers.
Breaking Records in the Frozen North
What made this voyage particularly exceptional was the crew’s successful passage through the Northern Sea Route, traversing the northernmost point of Eurasia. For Shcherbakov, a decorated athlete in Russia, this was his third time completing the route. But for yacht owner Belov—despite having completed five previous circumnavigations, three of them solo—it was a first-time achievement through the Russian Arctic.
“For Aleixo, the main goal was to traverse the Russian North,” Shcherbakov explained to TV BRICS. “On August 7, we reached Cape Chelyuskin—no yacht had arrived this early in the season before. This was the earliest passage of Earth’s northernmost mainland point.”
The success wasn’t just luck. Shcherbakov meticulously analyzed ice conditions from the previous 12 years to chart their course, and favorable weather cooperated. At Cape Chelyuskin, they briefly anchored and went ashore, where border guards welcomed them. Both captains left entries in the guest book—one in Portuguese, one in Russian.
Encounters with the Arctic’s King
The expedition also reached Bennett Island, a remote and rarely visited location where polar bears reign supreme. The crew wisely observed from their yacht using drones rather than venturing onto land.
“The polar bear is the most fearsome predator,” Shcherbakov recalled. “Humans are part of their food chain. I’ve encountered bears three to four meters tall that can leap 15 meters—one ton flying through the air. That’s why we didn’t land anywhere, only observed with drones. It’s like a fairy tale, the mythical Sannikov Land. People visit there once every 30 years.”
Despite the harsh Arctic environment, the expedition found warmth in the hospitality of northern Russian communities. In Tiksi, Russia’s northernmost port, local residents prepared a three-page program for their visitors, including museum tours, cultural performances, traditional meals, and even a friendly soccer match between a Yakutia team and the Brazilian crew members.
A Journey with Purpose
Beyond celebrating BRICS’s 20th anniversary, the expedition also honored the upcoming 200th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Russia and Brazil in 2028. Belov is compiling footage for a documentary film, while Shcherbakov has prepared a comprehensive report for the Russian Geographical Society on the Northern Sea Route and recommendations for developing yacht tourism in the Arctic.
As the Fraternidade prepares to dock in Salvador—the same port from which it departed on April 12, 2025—the expedition stands as a testament to international cooperation, human determination, and the spirit of adventure that continues to draw people to the world’s most remote corners.
