Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race Briefing

For most of the world, December 24 is Christmas Eve and a time to relax and celebrate. But for 102 Skippers, including the eleven Clipper Race Skippers, today means one thing: the Rolex Sydney Hobart is just two sleeps away.

All the Skippers and Mates taking part in the iconic Bluewater Classic gathered at the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia for the main briefing, which began with an update from the Bureau of Meteorology.

The wind will be coming from the east at around 10 knots on Race Start, with the wind backing northeast and slowing increasing as the boats track down the New South Wales coast.

Day two on Wednesday will see the winds increase to 15 to 25 knots from the north-northeast, whilst a weak westerly change on Thursday through the Bass Straight will result in southwest-southeast conditions off the Tasmanian coast.

The Clipper Race teams are expected to come down the Derwent to Hobart on Saturday 30 December, with the fleet to be greeted by a stronger front and westerly change, as well as a bit of rain, when it arrives at Constitution Dock.

For the Clipper Race fleet, today will be the final big day of preparations before the crew take a well-earned Christmas Day break. There will be no chance of overindulging tomorrow though, with the teams to be on board and ready to go at 0830 local time (2230 UTC) on Boxing Day.

The Slipping Lines ceremony will begin at 1000 local time (2300 UTC) and will be shown live, weather permitting, on the Clipper Race Facebook Live page. The fleet will then take part in a spectacular parade of sail in front of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House from 1100 local time (2400 UTC) before lining up in Sydney Harbour for race start at 1300 (0100 UTC).

The Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race will be broadcast live on Channel 7 in Australia, live on Fox Asia, and on the live stream on the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race website.