Organizers said Friday that two Sydney to Hobart sailors have died at sea amid wild weather conditions that forced line honors favorite Master Lock Comanche to withdraw among mass retirements.

The Cruising Yacht Club of Australia in Sydney said Friday that one sailor each on entrants Flying Fish Arctos and Bowline were killed after being struck by the boom, a large horizontal pole at the bottom of the sail.

The men were hit in the head by booms on their yachts in separate episodes, as participants faced challenging weather conditions, the police said.