The south coast tornado was a tornadic waterspout spawned by a supercell thunderstorm off the south coast of New South Wales on 26 December 2001, during the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race. The tornado passed very close to the yacht Nicorette II, which was severely damaged but able to complete the race with a spare mainsail. Nicorette recorded wind speeds of close to (making the tornado at least F2 on the Fujita scale) and was struck by hail the size of golf balls. According to the boat's meteorologist, the tornado began with a diameter of around , but grew in size until it was across. The waterspout proceeded to strike several other boats with weaker winds. The tornado should not be confused with the severe storm that wrought havoc on the race in 1998. See also List of tornadoes and tornado outbreaks List of Southern Hemisphere tornadoes and tornado outbreaks References External links Forum with numerous images of the tornado 2001 in Australia 2001 in Australian sport Tornadoes in Australia Tornadoes of 2001 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race December 2001 events in Australia