Sydney to Hobart yacht race 2024: Olympian Grae Morris jumps aboard Comanche for wild ride
When you are a star of the Paris Olympics opportunities come your way but it still hasn’t guaranteed this gun a ride on the most famous ocean mauler in the world in the Sydney to Hobart
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Windsurfer Grae Morris foiled rivals to be the youngest sailing medallist at the Paris Olympics on debut and while it’s made his life “a little crazy and lots of fun’” it has yet to guarantee him a ride in the upcoming Sydney to Hobart yacht race.
A silver medallist on the iQFoil board in Marseille, Morris, turned 21 on Wednesday and did score a ride on one of the most famous supermaxis in the world which is unexpectedly returning to the Sydney to Hobart under a fourth sailing team headed by a pair of highly successful Australian sailors.
The hulking young board sailor is keen to experience his first Sydney to Hobart on the 100 footer which owned the 24 hour world speed record until 2023 and won the 2015 Sydney to Hobart for original owner and Netscape billionaire Jim Clarke.
“It’d love to have a go,’’ said Morris, who has never raced offshore or spent time on a yacht of any description. “I’ve seen the start for years so I thought I’d use this time for some different experiences and hopefully learn some stuff.
But the list of applicants to join the new team directing Comanche in 2024 is long and illustrious with the supermaxi one of the most famous and successful in the world.
After being sold to Sydney businessman Jim Cooney in 2017, the yacht claimed line honours in that event and two years later repeated the feat while setting the current Sydney to Hobart record of one day, nine hours, 15 minutes and 24 seconds of the 628nm race.
In 2022, under John Winning Junior, it took line honours again before finishing second to LawConnect after an engrossing two-boat Derwent River stoush last year.
Now multiple Sydney to Hobart overall winner and former Ichi Ban skipper Matt Allen, who has won the race overall in 2017, 2019 and 2021, and world Etchells champion James Mayo, returning to Sydney to Hobart racing after being on the 1987 winner Sovereign, have acquired the 100-footer from its Singapore owner for the 2024 event.
“I thought why not. I've been following the boats out for the last 30 years or so (at the start) and I also thought it would be good for the yachting community to keep the boat here to be honest,’’ Mayo said.
Mayo said he contacted Allen, one of the most successful Sydney to Hobart skippers in history, and asked if he would be keen to campaign Comanche with him
“I've never had a win over the line but a couple of seconds in the past,’’ said Allen, the vice president of the Australian Olympic Committee.
“I thought this would be a great opportunity to sail a boat with the nucleus of a crew who did it last year. And with a bit of unfinished business,’’ Allen said.
“It’s all about the line honours, trying to make the boat as fast as possible.’’
The pair has snared multiple Sydney to Hobart winner Iain Murray, who was aboard Comanche the last two years, as sailing master.
Murray, who also racked up multiple line honours, overall honours and race records on Wild Oats over the years, is currently the America’s Cup regatta director in Spain and will be in charge of patching the crew for the 2024 race together.
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