The yacht Celestial V70 has been provisionally declared the overall winner of this year’s Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race. Owned and skippered by Commodore Sam Haynes of the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, Celestial V70 completed the challenging 628 nautical mile journey on handicap in a time of 1 day, 16 hours, 10 minutes, and 20 seconds. This victory marks Commodore Haynes’ second win of the prestigious Tattersalls Cup, the first being in 2022 with the same vessel.
In his remarks, Haynes expressed condolences for the tragic deaths of sailors Roy Quaden and Nick Smith, which cast a shadow over the race. Despite the difficult weather conditions, which proved advantageous to Celestial V70, Haynes commended his crew and their collective effort.
While Celestial V70 claimed the top spot on handicap, the supermaxi LawConnect, skippered by Christian Beck, took line honours for the second consecutive year with a finishing time of 1 day, 13 hours, 35 minutes, and 13 seconds. Out of respect for the fallen sailors, celebrations were kept subdued.
