Ambon Ready To Welcome Darwin-Ambon Yacht Race Participants

Ambon, Maluku, Aug 28 (ANTARA) - The Ambon municipality will organize a welcoming ceremony for the participants of the Darwin-Ambon Yacht Race (DAYR) on August 31. "The welcoming ceremony will be held at Merdeka (Freedom) Square, where the participants and Ambon inhabitants will get together," said Anthony Latuheru, Secretary of Ambon administration, here on Saturday. The ceremony will feature traditional dance and song performances, as well as Maluku local cuisine. A number of sporting events will also be held at Amahusu and Latuhalat villages, Nusaniwe sub- district, Ambon, on September 1. "The event will include beach volleyball, tug of war and several other traditional games," Latuheru stated. The Darwin to Ambon Yacht Race, covering a total distance of approximately 634 nautical miles (nm), started from Darwin Harbour, Northern Territory, Australia, on August 25 at 11 am local time. Nine yachts, with eight Australians and one New Zealander, are taking part in the international yacht race. The names of the participating yachts are: Australian Maid, Casper, Cattilac, Even Karma, Forty Two, Gameset, Pandora, Free Spirit, and St Jacob. The Australian Maid, with skipper Liza Jane Chamberlain and 12 crew members, was the first yacht to reach the finishing line at Negeri Amahusu coast, Maluku Province, on Tuesday morning. Earlier, Latuheru said all yachts were expected to arrive in Ambon by August 30 at the latest, adding that the number of participants in the 2012 race had dropped. "There were 19 yachts last year," he noted. The international yacht racing event is supported by the Indonesian Tourism and Creative Economic Ministry, Australia`s Northern Territory administration, the Darwin City Council, the Ambon administration, and the Dinah Beach Cruising Yacht Association.