SYDNEY (AP) — A briefing for this year's Sydney to Hobart race began Wednesday with a minute’s silence for the two sailors who died in last year’s event. It ended with hopes that the catastrophic weather conditions will not be repeated in this year's race starting Friday.
The mandatory briefing from the Bureau of Meteorology predicted the scheduled 129 starters in the annual race from Sydney harbor to Hobart on the island state of Tasmania will face strong southerly winds of up to 25 knots (about 46 kilometers per hour, or 28 mph) after leaving Sydney Heads.
Those winds are likely to slacken across the New South Wales state and Tasmanian coasts across the weekend. The fleet has still been warned there is some chance of strong winds.
But the forecast is much different from last year, when boat-breaking conditions caused two sailors to die on the first night in storms. Nick Smith and Roy Quaden were the two sailors who died in 2024 — the race’s first fatalities since six died in 1998.
CYCA Commodore Sam Haynes said the sailor deaths will not be forgotten.
“This will be something that is very much on our minds, and the families of these two sailors,” said Haynes, who is also the skipper of reigning overall winner on handicap Celestial V70.
Organizers also announced Wednesday that a group of 15 yachts will scatter rose petals off the coast of Bondi Beach in memory of the 15 lives lost during the Bondi terror attack on Dec. 14.
“Going past Bondi, 15 boats will spread some petals into the ocean at the point,” said Haynes.
LawConnect, a 100-foot super maxi skippered by Australian tech millionaire Christian Beck, won line honors in last year's race. It had an elapsed time of 1 day, 13 hours, 35 minutes and 13 seconds for the 628-nautical mile (722 miles, 1,160 kilometers) race.
The race record set by LDV Comanche — 1 day, 9 hours, 15 minutes, 24 seconds — has stood since 2017 and only appears under threat in very strong downwind conditions, which are not expected this year.
AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports
FILE - Yachts jockey for position during the start of the Sydney Hobart yacht race in Sydney, Wednesday, Dec. 26, 2018. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft, File)
CAIRO (AP) — A boat belonging to an Egyptian pharaoh is being assembled in full view at the Grand Egyptian Museum’s exhibition hall.
Staff began piecing together the cedarwood boat, one of two that were found that belong to King Khufu, Tuesday morning as dozens of visitors watched.
The assembly of the 42-meter (137-foot) -long vessel, which sits next to its already-assembled twin that has been on display, is expected to take around four years, according to Issa Zeidan, head of restoration at the Grand Egyptian Museum. It contains 1,650 wooden pieces.
King Khufu ruled ancient Egypt more than 4,500 years ago and built the Great Pyramid of Giza.
“You’re witnessing today one of the most important restoration projects in the 21st century,” said Tourism and Antiquities Minister Sherif Fathy, who attended the event.
The $1 billion museum, also known as GEM, was touted as the world’s largest when it was lavishly inaugurated last month. It's home to nearly 50,000 artifacts, including the collection of treasures from the tomb of the famed King Tutankhamun, which was discovered in 1922. The museum, located near the pyramids at the edge of Cairo, is expected to boost Egypt’s tourism revenues and help bolster its ailing economy.
The boat was one of two discovered in 1954, opposite the southern side of the Great Pyramid. The excavation of its wooden parts began in 2014, according to the museum’s website.
The exact purpose of the boats remains unclear, but experts believe they were either used to transport King Khufu’s body during his funeral or were meant to be used for his afterlife journey with the sun god Ra, according to the museum.
Archeologists prepare to reassemble the second solar boat of King Khufu, at the Grand Egyptian Museum in Giza, Egypt, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
Archeologists measure an ancient wooden block as they prepare to reassemble the second solar boat of King Khufu, at the Grand Egyptian Museum in Giza, Egypt, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
Archeologists carry an ancient wooden block as they reassemble the second solar boat of King Khufu, at the Grand Egyptian Museum in Giza, Egypt, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
People film archeologists as they reassemble the second solar boat of King Khufu, at the Grand Egyptian Museum in Giza, Egypt, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
Visitors view the first solar boat of King Khufu, at the Grand Egyptian Museum in Giza, Egypt, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
