Osaka Cup 2007 -
16 May 2007
Prize Awarding Ceremony held on May 10, 2007
The MELBOURNE OSAKA CUP 2007 Prize Awarding Ceremony was held at ‘Fespa’ located in the Osaka World Trade Center Building at 3pm on 10 May 2007. The ceremony was open to the public with three hundred people gathering to celebrate the achievements of the sailors. In addition to crews from the twelve finishing yachts, crews from three of the withdrawn yachts Pippin, Runaway and Wasabi also traveled to Osaka for the ceremony and to experience the post race hospitality that Osaka is famous for.
The ceremony commenced with an introduction of the crews as they entered the venue, This was followed by congratulatory addresses by Dr. Junichi Seki, Mayor of Osaka and Councillor Carl Jetter from the City of Melbourne.
The awardees were as follows:
First Finish Alex – Team MacAdie
Winner Racer Group Class A – COCORIN interland
Winner Racer Group Class B – Hullaballoo
Winner Racer Group Class C – Tamagomalu
Second Place Racer Group Class C – Southern Light
Open Racer Group Class B Alex – Team MacAdie
Open Racer Group Class C – Ryujin FGI
In addition special awards were presented as follows:
“Fun Time” Award - Dekadence
The crew dealt with hard work and on-board repairs, keeping themselves and everyone following the race entertained with good humour and some fun activities including a “Message in a bottle” as they crossed the equator.
“Cleanest Crew” Award- Asadori
Encountering squalls for 5 consecutive days, (particularly during Mr Fujita’s watch) the crew had the opportunity to keep clean- out in the rain.
“Food & Wine Appreciation” Award - Ingenue
They baked bread, grew fresh yogurt, cooked BBQs and enjoyed wine on board, which made all of us living ashore envious.
“Special Celebration at Sea” Award- Wild Boar
Mr. Yoneda celebrated his 60th birthday (an auspicious birthday in Japan) crossing the equator. The celebration menu consisted of curry with rice and pancakes, served as an alternative to birthday cake.
- “True Cruising” Award Esoterica
They raced to Osaka for the sake of having a great time and weren’t concerned about their placing. The main goal for Esoterica was to enjoy the race.
- “Resilience” Award Gusto
Down to a one man crew, Brian coped with everything thrown at him - bad weather, breakages and having to sail on his own. No matter what happened, he could do it.
All the crews, including those who retired received a commemorative plate made from clay taken from the bottom of Osaka Bay.
The event concluded with all the sailors posing on stage for a group photo. Following the ceremony participants attended the Official Post Race Reception at the Hyatt Regency Osaka, at which we had the honor to receive the Governor of Victoria - Professor David de Kretser AC. Four hundred people, including race organisers, a delegation from Melbourne and race volunteers attended the reception and joined with the sailors to enjoy the festive atmosphere complete with Japanese drumming and photos from the race start and finish projected onto the big screen.
