The Rolex Sydney to Hobart Race is considered to be one of the premiere mixed-fleet yacht races in the world. Setting sail every year on Boxing Day, this year’s race attracted 103 yachts.

This year, for the first time in its 78-year history, the race also includes a cat. No, not a catamaran. The race does not allow multihulls. The cat in question is a feline named Oli sailing on Sylph VI, a 12m (40ft) yacht built in 1960, in the two-handed division. 

The BBC notes that there’s no record of any feline seafarers in the grueling regatta. Carrier pigeons – sure: they were once used to send messages back to shore and have graced many a deck during the ocean classic. But cats? No.

Oli’s owner Bob Williams says the pair didn’t set out to be pioneers. The moggy is simply part of the furniture on Sylph VI and leaving him behind on the boat’s jaunt south was out of the question.
 
“I’ve done lots of crazy things, but this isn’t one of them,” Mr. Williams told the BBC ahead of the race.

The race organizers – while initially bemused – are also on board. There are no race rules prohibiting animals, and cats have a long history in maritime travel, the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia pointed out.

“One of the great things about the Rolex Sydney Hobart is all the wonderful characters in the race and the diversity of boats,” Commodore Arthur Lane said.

Oli and his owner Bob Williams have sailed together for the past five years. The duo and their co-skipper, Chris Warren, set off bound for Hobart on the oldest boat in the race and the only boat with a ship’s cat. They hope to arrive in Hobart before New Year’s Eve.

Meet the first cat to sail in the Sydney to Hobart race

Thanks to Alaric Bond for contributing to this post.