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LawConnect wins line honours in Sydney to Hobart
LawConnect have won line honours in the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, beating defending champion and favourite Andoo Comanche by seconds.
It’s fourth time lucky for owner Christian Beck, who has been the runner-up for the past three years, but after one day and 16 hours the race is finally over and Beck has won.
Watch below a replay as LawConnect cross the finish line:
51 seconds separates winner
The official gap between Sydney to Hobart winner LawConnect and Andoo Comanche was just 51 seconds.
The final finish time was 1 day, 19 hours, 3 minutes and 58 seconds – more than 10 hours slower than the race record set by Comanche in 2017.
LawConnect fly protest flag
LawConnect sailing master Tony Mutter has said the boat is currently flying a protest flag, but the team are yet to discuss whether they will go through with it.
“We did notify the race committee that we were flying a protest flag…for an incident during the race that we thought affected our performance,” Mutter said.
“We slowed down for half an hour… on standby for a boat we thought was in distress.”
Mutter confirmed the boat in question was Andoo Comanche, but stressed they didn’t think it was intentional.
“There was no intent on their part to create that problem…we’re not suggesting that at all,” he said.
Watch LIVE: Sydney to Hobart winners press conference
Amateur sailor becomes Sydney to Hobart winner
The LawConnect crew have just reached the dock in Hobart and are celebrating.
On board, four amateur sailors who are employees at Christian Beck’s company LawConnect, including Wenee Yap who until three weeks ago, had never sailed on the open ocean.
Now, Wenee is a Sydney to Hobart winner, and she’s raced in some of the toughest conditions.
Wenee Yap is part of the LawConnect crew for this year’s Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race.Credit: James Brickwood
Will more boats reach Hobart today?
LawConnect and Andoo Comanche are hours ahead of the rest of the fleet, but we are expecting more boats to cross the finish line today.
Overall handicap contenders Alive, URM and Moneypenny are in a tight battle for third, and are about 86 nautical miles from Hobart.
As for the rest of the fleet, Wild Thing 100 could also finish today, but it’s unlikely we’ll see any of the smaller boats for another day or two.
URM Group are in the contest for third.Credit: Getty
Beck’s boat wins against all odds
Thousands of people line the shore in Hobart, while spectator fleets zip in between the two 100-foot supermaxis in the Harbour.
Andoo Comanche might be the fastest supermaxi in the world, but the hard work has paid off for LawConnect.
It’s a fairytale ending for Christian Beck and his crew, who lost one of their most important sails on night one after wild storms thrashed the fleet, but against all odds they have crossed the line first and will be celebrating at Customs House when they reach land.
LawConnect and Andoo Comanche side-by-side
We’re less than one kilometre away from the finish line, and Andoo Comanche has just got its nose in front.
LawConnect and Andoo Comanche are side by side, if they wanted, the two boats could have a bit of banter as the race to the finish line.
Watch: Sydney to Hobart finish
Watch a replay of the finish below:
LawConnect takes the lead
LawConnect has just overtaken Andoo Comanche in the battle for line honours, with Christian Beck’s yacht now a supermaxi length ahead.
We’re less than two nautical miles to the finish, and it’s getting close.
