Sydney to Hobart yacht race live updates, latest news, weather, drama, Andoo Comanche wins
Sydney to Hobart sailors were on hand to welcome in the last yacht in the Sydney to Hobart just minutes before New Year’s Eve with the race now done and dusted. The highlights.
Jan 1: The 2022 is done and dusted with the biggest welcome home reserved for one of the smallest- and slowest - yachts in the race.
In wonderful scenes, Hobart sailors gave retirees Kathy Veel and Bridget Canham the warmest of welcomes when they finished the 77th edition of the race at 11.42pm on New Year’s Eve.
Sailing on the second smallest boat in the fleet which was built nearly 50 years ago, the two-handed yacht, the two sailors were overwhelmed by their welcome.
“Unbelievable. Overwhelming. When you have people shouting ‘Curr-a-wrong’ … it was unbelievable, incredible,’’ said Veel, 70, who was crowd funded to do the race with Canham.
“I got messages from people out of the past, it’s incredible. I’m really proud of what we’ve done.”
“The boat behaved so well, I’m so in love with the boat and it’s some of the best sailing I’ve ever enjoyed in my whole life, in the last week.”
Dec 31: It began with a crazy start full of close calls, blue language and collisions in picture perfect conditions on Sydney Harbour at 1pm on Boxing Day.
It ended with a new line honours winner, the race record still intact, stories of 40 plus knot winds for many, boat breakage and “horrible” conditions for others.
The 77th edition was anything but the “easy” race tipped by some before the start despite warnings of boat and body breaking conditions by sailing veterans and top forecasters. RACE WRAP HERE PLUS RESULTS
12.30pm: The tail-light of the fleet is hoping her current ETA of 11.30pm holds true so she can arrive in Hobart in time for New Year’s Eve celebrations.
Every yacht in the fleet was home by late Friday night with just Currawong still racing.
Currawong sought shelter during bad conditions early in the event before returning to racing.
Dec 30 3.11pm: All but the smallest and slowest yachts in the Sydney to Hobart are now safely docked after a tough race south.
By late afternoon on Friday 96 crews were celebrating finishing the famous ocean race with recent arrivals including the two-handers Crux and Speedwell and the yacht Reve, with father and daughter Kevin and Alexis Wheelan aboard.
For the supermaxis it was a super-fast, pretty uneventful race to Hobart. Not so for the smaller boats, mighty minnows and two-handers like Wendy Tuck and Campbell Geeves on Speedwell.
“It was a race of 20,000 halves,’’ said Tuck, the first Australian skipper to win a Clipper round the world race sailing with her great mate for the second year.
The duo’s boat suffered various damage in wild winds and big seas on the 29th, including snapping their whisper pole that holds their jib out on the weather side of the boat. FULL STORY
9am: Crews on 26 yachts rushed over the finish line of the Sydney between midnight and 8.45am on Friday at the end of a fast race for some and a torrid one for others.
With Celestial and her crew to be handed the silverware at a dock presentation today, there will be plenty of sailors around to cheer.
Overnight 26 relieved crews made it home by around 9am, leaving just 20 still to cross the finish line.
7am: The two-hander yacht Mistral, raced by Rupert Henry and Greg O’Shea, is the first in its class to cross the finish line.
Mistral is also favoured to claim the two-handed IRC honours in the 2022 race in a top performance from Henry and O’Shea.
Henry’s father David Henry and crewmate Stephen Prince also raced on a two-handed yacht and arrived in Hobart on Friday. At 79 he is the oldest skipper in the race.
The last yacht still at sea is also a two-hander in Currawong which is being sailed by Kathy Veel and Bridget Canham.
Dec 29, 6.48pm: The Sydney yacht Celestial has been declared the overall winner of the Sydney to Hobart.
“I’m screaming loud and proud,’’ said skipper Sam Haynes. “It means everything, everything, especially after last year. We put together a program targeting this race.”
“It’s like an elation – it’s huge for me and the crew. I can’t believe it. It’s a bit of a life changer.
“This boat is a weapon. It’s up there with the best 52 footer IRC boats in the world.”
Last year Haynes finished second to Ichi Ban after being handed a time penalty.
12.30pm: Crux crewmen Peter Grayson has given an insight to what it is like at sea in a Sydney to Hobart while big boat crews catch up for dinner and celebrate completing the race onshore.
And doing it especially tough are the two-handed boats, allowed to race for the first time a year ago.
“It’s been a very tiring 36 hours. I haven’t been able to get much sleep. Lots of things happening, helming, sail changes,’’ he said off the boat.
“So I am beyond exhausted with sea sickness on top of it.
“Last night was cold, wet and miserable.’’
9.55am Race officials are now hoping to confirm the overall winner of the Sydney to Hobart late today
A hearing this afternoon could well determine the outcome of the race.
The yacht Enterprise Next Generation has applied for redress after standing by the damaged yacht Koa.
If awarded enough time she has the potential to eclipse current overall race favourite Sam Haynes and his Celestial crew.
This is not the expected outcome but will make it a nervous wait for Haynes and his crew who finished second last year after being given a time penalty.
8.15am: Just 25 yachts are docked in Hobart as the going gets tougher for the remaining yachts at sea.
In fact, only 35 more are expected to make it to Hobart today as they battle tough upwind conditions,
That would leave 40 to make their way home on Friday.
There are also a number of damaged yachts continuing to race on.
CYCA Moon has a damaged gooseneck but is jury rigged and continuing on.
Flying Cloud has a broken boom but is also racing on.
11.10pm: As the Sydney to Hobart entered its third day, a ninth yacht headed to the sidelines and the majority of the fleet were still at sea battling testing conditions.
Eye Candy from New Caledonia, was the first international competitor to retire for unknown reasons.
At 11pm on Wednesday only 22 of the starting fleet of 109 had made it to Hobart with a flurry of arrivals expected on Thursday.
Earlier, the crew on Huntress, which lost its rudder, made a controlled transfer to a police launch and were taken to Flinders Island and reported safe but with many suffering from sea sickness.
In a separate incident a police launch was assisting Sail Exchange which also had a broken rudder.
5.04pm: Andoo Comanche skipper John ‘Herman’ Winning and his team will be back to defend their Sydney to Hobart win next year but in-between they have an incredible mission for the boat.
It was built as an ocean marauder capable of breaking records and winning the most prestigious ocean race in the world and that’s what the super slick supermaxi Andoo Comanche has been doing. But under her new skipper John “Herman’ Winning and his victorious Sydney to Hobart crew, the supermaxi may go hunting for a lot more silverware in the next 12 months. FULL STORY
4.30pm: A Sydney to Hobart sailor on Moneypenny suffered a serious leg injury and was trigged for hours aboard the bucking boat flooded with tonnes of water.
Here’s what happened. Warning: Graphic content.
2.20pm: It’s wet and wild for yachts racing in the Sydney to Hobart on Wednesday afternoon with Tassie Police now on their way to help two boats that have retired from the testing conditions with damage.
The yacht White Noise is the latest retirement – bringing to eight the number of casualties this year to date. FULL STORY
The yacht has reported all crew are safe and well and heading to Launceston after a safety line failure.
Race officials said a Tasmanian Police vessel is also one its way to Huntress and Exchange Sail, who both retired from the Sydney to Hobart earlier today, to offer assistance.
1pm. Wild winds have blown in some of the major contenders for the overall honours in the Sydney to Hobart with Celestial now moored in Hobart.
The Sydney yacht is the clubhouse leader for the overall honours ahead of Gweilo, Caro and Warrior Won after arriving in Hobart on Wednesday and expected to be confirmed as the winner on Thursday.
Last year the Sam Haynes skippered Celestial incurred a time penalty and finished second to Matt Allen’s Ichi Ban in the race for the prestigious honours.
“Last year at the finish, we knew we had the best corrected time,” he said. “We just about had our hands on the Tattersall Cup…”.
“I also talked to my crew about how they felt. We decided together that we were going to come back, try again.”
There are still yachts on the water who can beat him but he is in the box seat for the win.
9.45am: Veteran sailor David Blanchfield has been taken to hospital in an ambulance with leg injuries on his arrival in Hobart this morning on Sean Langman’s yacht Moneypenny.
The well known bowman was slammed by a wave and washed from the bow to the mast during a hectic final night at sea where winds have reportedly gusted past 40 knots.
The retirement list is also growing with Huntress the latest yacht out with damage.
The boat lost her rudder, a common occurrence in the conditions at sea.
Reports an EPIRB had been activated in the fleet were also investigated this morning.
It was later discovered a personal beacon went off accidentally on Enterprise Next Generation. All crew are reported safe and well.
The race has also confirmed no protests have been lodged to date by any arriving yachts.
8am: Andoo Comanche, LawConnect and Black Jack have filled the podium with Wild Oats, Stefan Racing and Willow all home by 8am this morning.
Navy One became the fourth retirement overnight with a broken boom while the two-hander Currawong is resting in Eden and monitoring weather before returning to the race.
Sail Exchange has also retired with a broken rudder and Mondo is out with a broken gooseneck.
The next yachts expected to cross the finish are Alive, URM and Moneypenny before a gap in the arrivals.
Celestial is the current leader in the handicap race from Gweilo and Warrior Won.
Dec 27 2am: The John ‘Herman’ Winning skippered Andoo Comanche and her 24 strong crew has lived up to her pre-race favouritism and held onto a hard-fought lead to stave off a late challenge by Christian Beck’s fellow supermaxi LawConnect for the 2022 Sydney to Hobart line honours.
Winning, sailing with a group of old mates, some of the rock stars of the sport and his father John ‘Woody’ Winning, 70, rushed over the finish line on the Derwent River under the cover of darkness and around three hours outside the race record of just over one day nine hours.
This was set by the same yacht under a different owner back in 2017.
The victory at 12.56am on Wednesday for a race time of one day 11 hours, 56 minutes and 48 seconds is a major sailing achievement for the Sydney businessman who is also a well known 18-footer skiff sailor like his father and won a world 29er skiff title as a teen.
It is still unknown if Andoo Comanche or any of her rivals will move forward with protests over the drama-packed start where two of the super maxis did penalty turns. MORE HERE
Andoo Comanche, built to break records and win all the world’s major ocean races by American billionaire Jim Clark and supermodel wife Kristy Hinze Clark, has been in the lead, or been thereabouts, for almost the entire 628nm race which started in Sydney at 1pm on Monday.
After a chaotic start, which saw the yacht do penalty turns and loose valuable time, his crew said they had no dramas during the first night and second day of the race before rushing down the east coast of Tasmania to the finish overnight.
Heading to Hobart behind Andoo Comanche and LawConnect – who finished in 1d:12h.20m.35s – on Wednesday morning were last year’s winner Black Jack and nine-time line honours winner Wild Oats.
Aboard Andoo Comanche were childhood friends Peter and Nathan Dean who went in tribute to their father John Dean who died in the deadly 1998 race.
10.23pm: Andoo Comanche is on track for victory in the 77th Sydney to Hobart early Wednesday morning.
But with just under 50 nautical miles to go, the race is far from over with Christian Beck’s LawConnect making a nuisance of herself in second place and ready to pounce if Comanche’s crew make even the smallest of mistakes.
Less than eight nautical mile of ocean separate the two as they charge onwards the finish.
Black Jack is in third place with Wild Oats fourth.
The race record of just over one day 14 hours will reman intact for another year.
9.30pm: Who emerges from a thrilling but frightening surf overnight in the best shape will determine the overall winner of the Sydney to Hobart – and who has the biggest damage bill.
“The boats need to be careful. It’s on the border line of a gale force wind,’’ said leading sailing forecaster Roger Badham. READ MORE
7:49pm The line honours winner of the Sydney to Hobart was being decided on the water on Tuesday night but it is still unknown if the victor in the 2022 event will be confirmed by their feats on the ocean or by an international jury.
Sailors have a specific amount of time after they cross the finish line on the Derwent River to lodged a protest if they desire.
It is yet to be determined if any of the four supermaxis intend to do this but speculation is rife some will.
Just before 8pm, Andoo Comanche remained in the lead with LawConnect second, Wild Oats third and Black Jack fourth. READ MORE
4.57pm: The police vessel Nemesis will rendezvous with the stricken yacht Koa at around 6pm tonight after the Sydney to Hobart racer broker her rudder.
The Nemesis was around 70nm away from Koa when it received her call for help from Bass Strait.
Once they meet, Koa will be towed to Eden on the far NSW south coast.
A NSW police statement said all well aboard the yacht which is the race’s third retirement.
4pm: Koa, which called for assistance after breaking its rudder in Bass Strait has become the fourth Sydney to Hobart retirement, leaving 106 boats still at sea.
And one of them is Andoo Comanche which continues to lead the fleet to Hobart – but probably not in record time.
Sailor Sam Fay said the 100-footer was expecting to be at the iron pot, around 12nm from the finish, at 10pm on Tuesday which would rule out a new record mark.
“Something might change but I don't thing so,’’ Fay said.
“There is a forecast for more pressure but we haven’t seen it yet.''
2.06pm: The Sydney yacht Koa has lost its rudder while racing in the Sydney to Hobart with a rival standing by to render assistance if needed.
Race officials said all crew aboard the yacht are OK.
The yacht is owned and skippered by Andy Kearnan and Peter Wrigley.
Enterprise Next Generation is standing by the stricken boat.
This Western Australian 40-footers is owned by Anthony Kirke.
NSW Water Police are sending a vessel to the yacht which is in Bass Strait.
1:25pm: Skippers are sending crew down below to rest up and rejuvenate after a tough 24 hours of racing ahead of wild winds forecast to hit the majority of the fleet later today.
URM skipper Marcus Ashley-Jones said current sailing conditions are just perfect at sea.
“It is amazing weather, champagne sailing,’’ he said in a phone call.
“We have the tunes going, we’ve checked out all the sport scores and the water is incredibly flat. I've never seen Bass Strait like this.’’ FULL STORY
Wild Oats continues to play catch-up after sail same overnight and is now in third place behind fleet leader Andoo Comanche and LawConnect.
The fleet still stands at 107 after two retirements the first afternoon and night of the race.
10.55am: Wild Oats X1 is on the charge after loosing valuable ground due to equipment dramas overnight. SEE BELOW
The 100-footer, chasing her 10th line honours win in 2022, has moved from fourth to second place overall behind Andoo Comanche.
While these two frontrunners were flying across Bass Strait at around 23 knots, they are still behind race record pace.
Gweilo, Celestial, the New Zealand entry Caro and former winner Alive were jousting for the top honours in the IRC handicap race.
10.45am Just before the Sydney to Hobart start Sydney skipper Wendy Tuck ducked up to her local hardware shop and forked our a few dollars for something she hopes will help her deal with the super fast conditions at sea today.
Tuck and co-skipper Campbell Geeves are aboard Speedwell, one of 19 two-handed yachts still racing to Hobart. FULL STORY
9am: A crewmen aboard one of the frontrunners in the Sydney to Hobart has revealed details of a drama at sea fixing a damaged sail during the first night of the race and how much time the incident cost.
Wild Oats veteran Chris Links told NewsLocal this morning in a call that the 100-footer is now in fightback mode and making ground on rivals Andoo Comanche, LawConnect and Black Jack.
Links said a seam across one of their big downwind sails split, causing issues.
The crew had to pull the sail down, a job made more difficult by a cable inside the front edge of the sail which is allows the sail to be rolled up when not in use.
“It is not an easy job,’’ Links said.
“It has a cable in it and we had to do the repair on deck.
“It took around one and a half hours to repair.’’
6.35am: Andoo Comanche has emerged from the first night at sea unscathed and with a handy lead on her 100-footer rivals.
The John Winning Jnr skippered yacht is leading the fleet across Bass Strait after a fast first night at sea.
But she is now behind LDV Comanche’s race record time of just over one day and nine hours set back in 2017.
Early this morning she had Christian Beck’s LawConnect hot on her heels with the Mark Bradman skippered Black Jack third and the Mark Richard’s helmed Wild Oats also right there.
Dec 27 5.30am: The Sydney yacht Celestial, last year slugged with a time penalty after being found to have breached race rules by not maintaining radio contact, had taken an early lead in the race for the overall honours.
The Sam Haines yacht was early on Tuesday at the front of a pack of 52 footers who were all identified pre-race as having the ability to claim the handicap honours.
Included in this group are the American yacht Warrior Won, the Sydney boat Gweilo, the New Zealand entry Caro and the Sydney boat Patrice.
Dec 26 11pm: The Sydney to Hobart has lost its second yacht with Yeah Baby retiring the first night at sea.
The yacht suffered rudder damage in the fast downwind sailing off the NSW coast.
At 11pm there was just eight nautical miles between Andoo Comanche which was leading the fleet and Wild Oats, the fourth super maxi.,
8pm: “It's fantastic.’’ That was the word off LawConnect as the supermaxi romped down the coast after a hectic start on Sydney Harbour sailing master Chris Nicholson said was “next level’’.
Nicholson said the four supermaxis were all within sight of each other and flying in 20-21 knots of wind.
“It’s pretty nice to be honest,’’ he told NewsLocal off the yacht.
It was also in stark contrast to the start which was drama-packed with numerous close calls.
“That was next level,’’ he said.
On URM, a contender for the overall honours, the crew were also enjoying a magic ride down the coast.
“ It's like sailing in the Whitsunday's,'' said URM skipper Marcus Ashley-Jones of the champagne sailing.
3pm LawConnect, Wild Oats, Black Jack and Andoo Comanche are leading the 77th Sydney to Hobart down the NSW coast after a drama-packed race start which saw numerous close calls and penalty turns undertaken by two race favourites.
There were frighteningly close calls between numerous yachts, including Andoo Comanche, as the big boats powered up to lead the 109 strong fleet up the harbour and out to sea.
The air turned blue as sailors called for room and water on a packed harbour.
It was crazy, chaotic and exciting – for the spectators at least.
The frontrunners crossed each other with what appeared to be just centimetres between them.
And in an early blow, both Wild Oats and Andoo Comanche did penalty turns.
There was also protracted debate aboard Wild Oats as to whether they had infringed in some way.
“Furl, furl, we are going to do a 720 (penalty turn),’’ yelled skipper Mark Richards on Wild Oats, who after much discussion with a member of his brain trust decided not to take any risks.
Richards also sent a crewmen down below to check out and survey the yacht for any damage.
In 2017 Wild Oats was protested at the end of the race due to a race incident soon after the start.
1pm: Thousands of water craft – from cruisers to surf skis – packed Sydney Harbour for the thrilling start to a 628 nautical mile race regarded as one of the most testing in the world.
The fleet was sent on its way in a 12-15 knot nor’easterly which will propel the yachts down the NSW at high speed as it increases later today and early on Tuesday.
But while great fun, this high speed racing can also be dangerous with skippers and crews on high alert.
“There is potential for boat damage for sure,’’ Andoo Comanche sailing master Iain Murray said.
12.15pm: More than 100 yachts are now on Sydney Harbour as the final countdown to the 2022 race begins with one of the biggest spectator fleets in recent memory out watching.
Crews are in last minute meetings in their cockpits while others are surveying the harbour and the latest weather information to work out the best position to be in for the 1pm start.
Each yacht is doing a fly past the starting boat to show their bright orange storm jibs.
These are the smallest sails on the boat and are required to be shown as one of a raft of safety changes introduced in the wake of the deadly 1998 Sydney to Hobart.
There is a 10 knot nor’easter currently which will build slowly when the race kicks off.
All signs of the fog which engulfed Sydney this morning are now gone, leaving behind blues skies.
11:30am: Veteran Sydney to Hobart sailor Grand Wharington believes people are underestimating how tricky this year’s race will be and maintains it could be decidedly “hairy’’ at times due to the high-speed sailing tonight and across Bass Strait tomorrow for a big percentage of the fleet.
Aboard the 80-footer Stefan Racing this year, Wharington has raced to Hobart on numerous supermaxis in the past and said super fast surfing can be fun but also hazardous.
The former round the world racer has also packed a pair of goggles for the race as added protection.
Salt water will hit helmsman and crew hard in the face, stringing eyes and making the going tough for steerers in particular.
“It really stings,’’ he said before heading out to the start.
The seat-of-the-pants racing is also hard on bodies and minds with tacticians and navigators working overtime.
“This stuff isn’t as easy as people think,’’ Wharington said.
10am: Sailing legend Iain Murray has raced to nine line honours wins on Wild Oats in the Sydney to Hobart and knows her better than anyone.
It’s why Murray, now sailing with John “Herman” Winning and his team on rival Andoo Comanche, believes Wild Oats’ Mark Richards will be the happiest supermaxi skipper in the fleet heading to the 1pm start of the race on Boxing Day.
“My gut feeling is Wild Oats will be pretty good in this forecast. That’s with 15 years of sailing on her,’’ he said.
“I don’t think they could have wished for a better one.’’
The current downwind forecast should have Wild Oats, Andoo Comanche, Black Jack and LawConnect – in whatever order – in Hobart late on Tuesday night or Wednesday morning.
In good news for the fleet, a fog blanketing Sydney on Monday morning will lift in time for the start of the race at 1pm.
Sydneysiders woke to thick fog but it will burn off well in time for the race start. But it may still cause issues at sea. READ MORE
DEC 25: The race record for the supermaxis is still touch-and-go but what is certain is the 77th Sydney to Hobart is going to be memorable – for a variety of reasons.
The latest forecast delivers a mixed bag for the 109 strong fleet with the supermaxis and bigger yachts flying to Hobart in near or record time, potentially turning the event into an overnighted for the frontrunners.
It is also looking to throw up an overall winner – the most prized trophy in the race – from yachts around half the size of the 100-footers.
But it’s not as easy as some imagine and dangers lurk. MORE HERE.
SICK TO THE STOMACH
This famous sailors job literally makes him sick. So why is he about to head out to sea in one of the toughest ocean races in the world? FULL STORY
NEW TRICKS FOR OLD SALT
He races one of the fastest and wettest boats on Sydney Harbour and has done so for more than 50 years. Now he’s jumping on one of biggest and wettest in the Sydney to Hobart – at age 70. FULL STORY
STRANGE NUMBERS GAME IN SYDNEY TO HOBART
A few years ago the distance of the Sydney to Hobart yacht race suddenly got shorter. Now, despite yacht entries rising, crew numbers are shrinking. So what’s happening to the famous race? FULL STORY
SPECIAL TRIBUTE
Their boat designer father has already won a Sydney to Hobart yacht race. Now his siblings are on rival boats trying to match his feat and to honour a loved one. FULL STORY
WHAT A RIDE
A Glen Innis cattle farm is a long way from the high seas he will encounter in the Sydney to Hobart. But this young gun has a special connection to the race. FULL STORY
CLOSE CALL
A near-miss between his supermaxi and a Sydney to Hobart rival has put Andoo Comanche skipper John Winning Junior and his team on high alert ahead of the Boxing Day start of the famous ocean race. FULL STORY
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