Investec Loyal's victory in the Rolex Sydney-Hobart 2011 race has been upheld after a protest claiming its crew asked a media helicopter pilot to spy on a rival was dismissed.
An international yacht racing committee hearing cleared skipper Anthony Bell's Australian boat of any wrongdoing.
Investec Loyal's win was the closest in 28 years, the boat crossing the line minutes ahead of Wild Oats XI.
"It's an against-the-odds victory for us," Bell said.
"But I'd prefer if there was a question mark on anything in the race that it was dealt with properly, rather than it being overlooked. You won't want to hear about it in years to come."
He added: "We felt when we left the dock on Boxing Day that we were going to do well this year."
The protest claimed that an Investec Loyal crew member asked the helicopter pilot whether Wild Oats XI was using a tri-sail as the two boats sailed down the Australian east coast on Tuesday morning.
Under yacht racing rules, such a request could be viewed as outside assistance.
The committee ruled that the crewman's question was not aimed at gaining a racing advantage, but was linked to his business as he had sold the sail to Wild Oats XI.
Investec Loyal took two days, six hours, 14 minutes and 18 seconds to finish the 680 nautical mile race - well outside the record of one day, 18 hours and 40 minutes.
TOP 10 FINAL STANDINGS
1) Investec Loyal
2) Wild Oats XI
3) Lahana
4) Loki
5) Hugo Boss
6) Living Doll
7) Ichi ban
8) Calm
9) Jazz
10) Ragamuffin
