Defending line honors champion LawConnect led the Sydney to Hobart yacht fleet out of Sydney Harbor on Thursday at the start of the 79th running of the 628-nautical mile (722 miles, 1,160 kilometers) race.
Favorite for line honors, Master Lock Comanche, was in close pursuit behind her rival 100-foot super maxi, with the pair leaving the harbor approximately 15 minutes after the start. A large spectator fleet gathered outside the exclusion zone in the harbor to witness the commencement of the race and soak in the pristine Southern Hemisphere summer conditions.
The fleet of 104 boats was anticipated to make a swift start down the New South Wales state coast in a northeasterly breeze before a wind change is expected to impact the Bass Strait overnight, bringing strong winds and potential showers.
The race route navigates the yachts across Bass Strait to the island state of Tasmania, concluding in the state capital of Hobart after traversing the last leg of the race on the Derwent River. Notably, the first all-Filipino crew of 15 sailors is participating in the event. Helmed by veteran sailor Ernesto Echauz, Centennial 7 is one of six international entrants, comprising sailors from the Philippines’ national team and the Philippines navy.
In the previous edition, LawConnect clinched line honors by a razor-thin margin, fending off defending champion Comanche by less than a minute in a thrilling finale between the super maxis. The 100-foot yachts engaged in a fierce competition for a significant portion of the race, establishing a considerable lead over the remaining fleet of 103 yachts that commenced last year’s event.
LawConnect, a runner-up in the past three editions of the race, completed the course in 1 day, 19 hours, 3 minutes, 58 seconds. Comanche crossed the finish line shortly after, registering a time of 1 day, 19 hours, 4 minutes, 49 seconds — a mere 51-second difference. This marked the second-closest finish in the history of the Sydney to Hobart race, following the 1982 event where Condor of Bermuda triumphed over Apollo by a mere seven seconds.
Comanche currently holds the race record of 1 day, 9 hours, 15 minutes, 24 seconds, established during its victory in 2017.
