Swedish maxi Nicorette won the Sydney-Hobart yacht race after surviving a gale-swept passage down Australia's south-east coast. The 24-metre Nicorette completed the 630 nautical mile race in an unofficial time of two days, 14 hours, two minutes and nine seconds, about 19 hours outside the record set last year by Danish-Australian boat Nokia.

Nicorette, skippered by Ludde Ingvall, battled galeforce, 50-knot winds in Storm Bay on the approach to Hobart before crossing the finish line for her first win in the blue-water classic. Heavy weather had forced the retirement of about 20 yachts from the fleet of 82 which started in Sydney Harbour on Tuesday.

Nicorette had her mainsail reefed and a storm jib hoisted as she approached Hobart through the gale and extreme cold in Storm Bay. The green-andwhite-hulled yacht broke away from Australian rival Wild Thing yesterday as they crossed a storm-tossed Bass Strait between the Australian mainland and the southern island state of Tasmania.

The pair had been within sight of each other for most of the race before Wild Thing, the biggest boat in the fleet, broke off the chase to fix a broken sail track.