Sydney to Hobart Tracker 2025: Live Updates & How to Track
The 80th edition of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race brought a historic first: a two-person crew took the overall win for the first time in the event’s history. Jiang Lin’s Min River crossed the line in a result that rewrote what sailors thought possible in this grueling 630-nautical-mile contest. If you want to follow the action in real time—whether the race is live or you’re reviewing the results—this guide covers every tracker worth bookmarking.
Edition: 80th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race · Recent Winner: Min River (overall 2025) · 1998 Fatalities: 6 sailors · Official Tracker: rolexsydneyhobart.com/race/2025/tracker · Alternative Tracker: tracker.ee/sh/
Quick snapshot
- Min River won the Tattersall Cup as the first double-handed yacht to win overall (Rolex Sydney Hobart Official Site)
- Jiang Lin became the first female owner/skipper to claim the overall win (Wikipedia)
- Six sailors died in the 1998 race during a violent storm (Rolex Sydney Hobart Official Site)
- Whether BNC my::NET/LEON will appeal the 1-hour-5-minute penalty further (Best4Boats)
- Full retirement list beyond Wind Shift during the 80th race (Boating New Zealand)
- Race starts annually on Boxing Day (26 December) at 1pm AEDT (Wikipedia)
- Master Lock Comanche finished Line Honours on 29 December 2025 in 2 days, 5 hours, 3 minutes, 36 seconds (Rolex Sydney Hobart Official Site)
- The 2026 race entry window opens in March following the established pattern (Wikipedia)
- Double-handed entries are expected to grow after Min River’s historic result (Rolex Sydney Hobart Official Site)
The following table summarizes key race statistics for the 80th edition.
| Label | Value |
|---|---|
| Race Name | 80th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race |
| Key Tracker URL | rolexsydneyhobart.com/race/2025/tracker |
| 2025 Winner | Min River (overall) |
| 1998 Deaths | 6 |
| Tracking Providers | Rolex, YB, Tracker.ee |
| Distance | 630 nautical miles |
| Start Date | 26 January 2026 |
| Line Honours Winner | Master Lock Comanche |
| Total Starters | 129 yachts |
| Last Finisher | Millennium Falcon (1 January 2026) |
How to track the Sydney to Hobart yacht race?
Following the fleet in real time comes down to knowing which platforms refresh fastest and what data each one shows. The Cruising Yacht Club of Australia runs the primary system, while independent aggregators add weather layers the official site doesn’t display.
Official Rolex Sydney Hobart Tracker
The official fleet tracker (Cruising Yacht Club of Australia) provides positions, speed, heading, and predicted finish times updated every 10 minutes during the race. During the 2025 edition, trackers showed live standings including Line Honours and distance-to-finish metrics for every competing yacht.
Live Finish Tracker
For the final leg into Tasmania, the Live Finish Tracker (Cruising Yacht Club of Australia) shows satellite-derived positions in the closing stretch. This layer activates once boats pass south of St Helens Point—the last major waypoint before the Derwent River approach.
Alternative Tracking Platforms
Independent aggregator tracker.ee overlays Windy weather maps on position data, giving sailors and armchair fans alike a way to see how wind shifts are affecting lead boats. The YB Tracking platform also serves several competing yachts directly with race-standard telemetry.
Who’s leading the Sydney to Hobart race?
The race hierarchy shifts constantly in the first 24-48 hours as boats negotiate the Bass Strait. During the 2025 edition, position battles at the front of the fleet kept spectators checking trackers obsessively.
Current Leaderboards
The official results page (Cruising Yacht Club of Australia) posts progressive standings for both Line Honours and IRC corrected time throughout the race. During the 80th edition, SHK Scallywag 100 led south of St Helens Point at 09:00AM AEDT on 27 December before the maxis made their final push.
Real-Time Position Updates
Tracker refreshes reveal momentum shifts that static results can’t capture. Boating New Zealand’s live updates documented how Comanche extended its margin once past the windward legs, ultimately finishing Line Honours 47 minutes ahead of LawConnect.
For fantasy-league sailors and armchair analysts alike, watching lead changes in real time is part of the ritual. The trackers make every tactical decision visible to the public for the first time.
The implication: real-time data transforms spectators into participants, letting anyone with a tracker watch the same strategic chess match that sailors face offshore.
Who won the Sydney to Hobart race?
Two trophies dominate the conversation: Line Honours goes to the first boat home regardless of size, while the Tattersall Cup (overall win on IRC corrected time) accounts for handicaps that let smaller yachts compete for the headline prize.
Recent Overall Winners
Min River took the Tattersall Cup in the 80th edition, making Jiang Lin the first woman to win overall and her crew the first double-handed team to claim the trophy outright. “Min River has been declared the Overall winner… making her owner, Jiang Lin, the first woman to ever win the race,” confirmed the official announcement.
Line Honours and IRC Results
Master Lock Comanche secured Line Honours in 2 days, 5 hours, 3 minutes, 36 seconds under skipper Matt Allen and James Mayo. The race proved one of the most competitive in years, with Best4Boats noting strong US and NZ showings including Bacchanal finishing 8th overall on IRC despite racing with a full crew against double-handed entrants.
“It’s the first time a double-handed yacht has won the Sydney to Hobart outright. It’s also the first time a female skipper has taken the overall trophy.”
Min River’s win required BNC my::NET/LEON to drop from first to second after a penalty—a sequence that played out over the race’s final hours and shows how protest hearings can reshape results long after boats cross the line.
What was the outcome of the protest in Sydney to Hobart?
Post-race protests are common in offshore handicap racing where rule compliance during heavy weather gets challenged after the fact. The 80th edition produced one result-altering decision that ultimately handed Min River the overall victory.
Protest Details
BNC my::NET/LEON crossed first on corrected time but received a 1-hour-5-minute penalty for a sail breach, dropping the yacht to second overall. Boating New Zealand’s live reporting documented how the protest hearing unfolded after the fleet had largely finished.
Disqualification Impact
The penalty promoted Min River from what would have been a strong result to the overall winner. The protest outcome reshaped the trophy distribution: Line Honours went to Comanche cleanly, while the corrected-time battle between Min River and BNC my::NET/LEON resolved in Min River’s favor after the penalty applied.
How many died from Sydney to Hobart in 1998?
The 1998 race remains the darkest chapter in the event’s history—a violent storm caught dozens of yachts unprepared and fundamentally changed how the sport approaches safety in offshore racing.
1998 Race Tragedy
Six sailors died when the 1998 edition encountered a storm system producing hurricane-force winds and massive seas. The race was described as “harrowing” and one that “shattered” the sailing community’s confidence in offshore competition standards at the time.
Lessons from the Storm
The 1998 disaster led to mandatory safety equipment upgrades, improved weather forecasting access for competitors, and stricter race entry criteria for offshore events globally. Modern trackers now allow race officials to monitor fleet positions continuously rather than waiting for radio check-ins.
“Sydney to Hobart 1998: the harrowing race that killed six and ‘shattered’ the sailing community.”
— Rolex Sydney Hobart Official Site
Every Boxing Day, veterans still reference 1998 when assessing fleet readiness. If you’re tracking the race live, remember that modern safety standards exist because of those six losses.
Race Timeline
Entries opened for the 80th edition
Race start at 1pm AEDT — 129 yachts launched from Sydney
SHK Scallywag 100 leading south of St Helens Point at 09:00AM AEDT
Master Lock Comanche finishes Line Honours in 2 days, 5 hours, 3 minutes, 36 seconds
Min River declared overall winner after BNC penalty confirmed
Millennium Falcon finishes last — race complete — at 10:22AM AEDT
Confirmed vs. Unconfirmed
Confirmed facts
- 6 deaths in 1998 race
- Min River 2025 overall win (Tattersall Cup)
- Master Lock Comanche Line Honours in 2d 5h 3m 36s
- BNC penalized 1h 5m, dropped to 2nd overall
- Official tracker at rolexsydneyhobart.com/race/2025/tracker
- 129 starters in the 80th edition
- First double-handed overall winner in race history
- First female owner/skipper to win overall
What’s still unclear
- Whether BNC will appeal the penalty further
- Complete retirement list beyond Wind Shift
- Exact weather conditions at key race moments
Voices from the Race
“Min River has been declared the Overall winner… making her owner, Jiang Lin, the first woman to ever win the race and… the first double handed crew to lay claim to the famous Tattersall Cup.”
— Rolex Sydney Hobart Official Announcement
“Congratulations to Matt Allen and James Mayo… on a superb victory… securing line honours in the 80th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.”
— Boating New Zealand
For sailors weighing whether to enter the next edition, Min River’s result sends a clear signal: a two-person crew can win outright against fully-crewed maxis if the conditions and tactics align. The penalty that reshaped the 2025 podium also shows how protest outcomes linger long after the finish line—making tracker access during hearings just as valuable as during the race itself.
Do sailors sleep during Sydney to Hobart?
Yes, in shifts. On a 630-nautical-mile race lasting 2-5 days, crews run watch systems (typically 3-4 hours on, 3-4 hours off) to keep boats racing while sailors rest. On double-handed yachts like Min River, the skipper and co-skipper run 2-hour watches to maximize rest efficiency while maintaining constant vigilance.
How do you live on a Sydney to Hobart yacht for two days?
Sailors survive on quick meals, hydration packs, and brief sleep rotations. Below-decks space is cramped, motion sickness is common, and weather exposure wears on even experienced crew. The race rewards preparation: those who’ve trained for the specific conditions typically perform better than those relying on raw talent alone.
What’s the prize for winning Sydney to Hobart?
The Tattersall Cup (overall IRC winner) carries significant prestige and a Rolex timepiece. Line Honours winners receive their own trophy and recognition, though the corrected-time trophy is considered the more coveted prize because it represents beating boats across all sizes and configurations. Both awards carry substantial cachet in the sailing world.
Why was the Sydney to Hobart winner disqualified?
In the 2025 edition, BNC my::NET/LEON crossed first on corrected time but received a 1-hour-5-minute penalty for a sail breach. The protest hearing dropped BNC to second overall, promoting Min River to the Tattersall Cup win. The exact technical infringement details are documented in the official protest record available through the race results page.
How to follow the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race?
Bookmark the official fleet tracker as your primary source. For weather context, layer in tracker.ee to see how wind conditions are affecting leaders. Follow race progress on the results page for standings updates, and check YouTube for start broadcasts and finish coverage.
What was the outcome of the protest in Sydney to Hobart?
BNC my::NET/LEON was penalized 1 hour and 5 minutes for a sail breach, dropping from first to second on corrected time. Min River was promoted to the overall win (Tattersall Cup). Protest decisions are posted on the official results page once hearings conclude, typically within 24-48 hours of a boat crossing the line.
Sydney to Hobart Yacht race competitors?
The 80th edition attracted 129 starters, ranging from 100-foot maxis like Master Lock Comanche to small double-handed yachts like Min River. International entries included strong contingents from New Zealand (Callisto, Gizmo) and the United States (Bacchanal finished 8th overall on IRC). All entries are listed in the official fleet roster on the race website.
Related reading: Bathurst Start Time NZ · Blue Jays vs Yankees Scores
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While tracking the fleet’s progress via Rolex or YB tools, the 2025 start time and streams details the Boxing Day cannon fire and broadcast options.
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