DECEMBER 27 (ABC)


1.
TOP VIEWS Yacht "Bewitched" sailing in heavy seas. (2 SHOTS)
0.10

2.
SV Radio relay vessel.
0.21

3.
TOP VIEW Yacht "Condor" going back to port after retiring.
0.29


DECEMBER 28


4.
SV Crew of "Yahoo II" unloading equipment.
0.33

5.
SV Skipper of Yahoo II, John Elgar speaking to reporter. (SOT)
0.56


DECEMBER 29


6.
AERIALS Yacht "New Zealand", the eventual winner. (2 SHOTS)
1.15


DECEMBER 30 (TVT 6)


7.
SV Nocturnal New Zealand crossing finishing line. (3 SHOTS)
1.34

8.
SV Crew of New Zealand cheering.
1.37

9.
SV Skipper Peter Blake standing with family on dock. (2 SHOTS)
1.41

10.
SCU Blake speaking. (SOT)
1.52

11.
GV Crew opening champagne.
1.56


TRANSCRIPT: ELGAR: (SEQ 5) "We were hit in fairly quick succession by three big breaking seas that just completely flattened us, and when the boat righted herself, one of the crew was missing, floating in the water, and we were unable to retrieve him."



BLAKE: (SEQ 10) "We were low-flying from wave-top to wave-top and this is 35 tonnes of yacht doing that. And, really taking a severe pounding, throwing the crew out of their bunks."





Initials ASG/JRS



SPORT: YACHTING
NOTE TO EDITORS: THIS STORY HAS COMMENTARIES BY SALLY BEGBIE (DECEMBER 28), DAVID HARDY (DECEMBER 29) AND TREVOR SUTTON (DECEMBER 30), WHICH MAY BE USED IF REQUIRED.

Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved

Background: The yacht 'New Zealand' took line honours in the 1984 Sydney-Hobart yacht race on December 30 with a time of three days, eleven hours, 31 minutes and 21 seconds-the slowest race time in three years. The near-gale force conditions with winds gusting over 50 knots for some sixty hours, took their toll on the other entrants in the race. A record 106 of the 152 yachts that sailed out of Sydney Harbour on December 26 retired before the end of the race. A crewman on the "Yahoo II" was washed overboard on the second night of the race - the first fatality in the race's history ' and 70-year-old Wal Russell was knocked unconscious. The Sydney-Hobart race has come to be regarded as one of the most gruelling in the world. Second home after the "New Zealand" was the "Maxi Vengeance" from New South Wales, which crossed the line with the "Indian Pacific" strongly tipped to take handicapped honours.