Troy Grafton claims Sydney-Hobart victory aboard Celestial

After 23 attempts and a heart-breaking near miss last summer, Hobart sailor Troy Grafton finally got his hands on one of the biggest rewards in world yacht racing.

AFTER 23 attempts and a heart-breaking near miss last summer, Hobart sailor Troy Grafton finally got his hands on one of the biggest rewards in world yacht racing.

As a crewman on the 52-foot flyer Celestial, Grafton and his 10 teammates were presented with the Tattersalls Cup at their blue-hulled beauty on Friday as winners of the Rolex Sydney-Hobart on overall handicap.

After finishing with the fastest time last year and having the cup ripped out of their hands on a technicality, it was vindication for the crew that could.

“It’s fantastic,” Grafton said.

“I’m still pinching myself to make sure this is really happening.”

Grafton, a 47-yar-old draftsman, rates his team highly.

“It’s the best in the world, we’ve just proven that,” he said.

“We’re not allowed to say it, but we’ve gone back-to-back on top of the leaderboard, and I’m so proud of them.”

Tasmanian crewman, Troy Grafton on board Celestial with the Tattersalls Cup after winning the overall winner of the Sydney to Hobart. Picture: Linda Higginson

Last year Celestial set the time to beat last year only to be stripped in the protest room over the accidental activation of an emergency beacon and failure to answer the radio when officials called to check they were okay.

It was almost enough to make skipper Sam Haynes, a 58-yer-old Sydney vet, quit yacht racing.

“I would have been quite happy to walk away from the sport at that stage,” he said.

“But I am still very involved with the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, where I am Vice-Commodore. I have a lot of history with the club and Rolex.

“I also talked to my crew about how they felt.

“We decided together that we were going to come back, try again.”

A sucker for punishment, Haynes will be back for more.

“Every time I do this race I think I’m never going to do it again,” he said.

“But yeah, we’ll be back, I think … for sure. I mean, why wouldn’t you? You know, it’s a fantastic thing to do.

The crew of Celestial with the Tattersall Cup after winning the overall winner of the Sydney to Hobart. Picture: Linda Higginson

“We wanted to come back and try again, and we did. The family support to make that decision was incredibly important to me.”

After being presented with the Tattersall Cup, the crew kept up with traditions by throwing the skipper overboard.

“It’s mind-bending to think we’ve won this race, it’s iconic,” Haynes said.

“It’s a lifetime achievement really. I’ve been trying for this trophy for a long time.

“It’s an awesome thing, a life changer.

“From last year, I’ve been through a process to get to the stage where I’m actually holding the trophy. I couldn’t really believe it until they handed it to me.”

The top five on handicap _ Celestial (NSW), Gweillo (NSW), Caro (New Zealand), Warrior Won (USA) and Quest (NSW) were all 52-footers.

Of the starting fleet of 109, which included nine retirements, 99 had all finished on Friday.

Tail-end Charlie and the second-smallest boat in the fleet at 30-feet, the NSW yacht Currawong was off Tasmania’s East Coast fighting to arrive before midnight on New Year’s Eve.