Another sailor fell overboard but was found alive after a major rescue effort.
The two men who died, a 55-year-old and a 65-year-old, were killed during the night when the boats were heading south along the east coast towards Tasmania. The circumstances are being investigated.
Changing Sails
We believe, although it's still early in the investigation, that the boats were changing sails when it happened, says Joe McNulty, head of the maritime police in New South Wales, the state where Sydney is located.
It was going fast on the sea at the time of the accidents – the boats are estimated to have been traveling at a speed of 25-30 knots. But the sea was not unusually high.
It's challenging conditions but not extreme, says Vice Commodore of the Cruising Yacht Club Australia, David Jacobs, who is organizing the competition, according to Australia's public service company ABC.
Man Overboard
During the night, a 37-year-old man also fell overboard from another boat in the race. The prospects of finding him did not look good.
But the actual boat and other participating boats in the vicinity worked together and managed to find the man. He was in good condition, although hypothermic, according to the police.
The boat leading the competition, the supermaxi boat Lawconnect, is expected to reach Hobart just over 36 hours after the start on Boxing Day from Sydney. 17 of the 104 participating boats have dropped out so far, many with damaged masts and sails.
This is not the first time the competition has been affected by fatalities, but it is the first since 1998. That year, six competitors died, five boats sank, and 55 participants were rescued from the sea after a deep low-pressure system swept over the boats in the Bass Strait, a feared area on the way down to Hobart.
