AMBON GEARS UP FOR ANNUAL YACHT RACE By Fardah

      Jakarta, Aug 28 (ANTARA) - Early on Tuesday morning, Ambon Mayor Richard Louhenapessy and the residents of Negeri Amahusu flocked to the city`s harbor in Amahusu village in Maluku province to greet the skipper and 12 crew members of the `Australian Maid' yacht.
      The `Australian Maid' captained by Lisa Jane Chamberlain was the first yacht to cross the finish line of the Darwin-Ambon Yacht Race (DAYR) on Tuesday at 7:37:15 a.m. local time.
     Lisa Chamberline, the winner of the race, expressed her happiness at being able to cross the finish line first.

      "I thank my colleagues for supporting each other during the sail from Darwin to Ambon," she said, adding that the wind had been quite good and there were no obstacles during the sail.

The annual yacht racing contest from Darwin to Ambon, covered a total distance of about 634 nautical miles, starting from the Darwin Harbour in Northern Territory, Australia, on Saturday at 11 a.m. local time.

This year, nine yachts are participating in the international DAYR. They consist of eight Australians and one New Zealander.

The names of the participating yachts are: Australian Maid, Casper, Cattilac, Even Karma, Forty Two, Gameset, Pandora, Free Spirit, and St Jacob.

The next yacht that is expected to reach the finish line on Tuesday at around 5 p.m. local time, is the Gameset, captained by Leigh James Mckay with a crew of 10 members, Peter Suter of the DAYR organizing committee said.

"A third yacht called Evan Karma, which is headed by Captain Morgan Duff Williams and has a nine-member crew, is expected to finish third in the race, possibly around the same time as the Gameset," he added.

All yachts are expected to arrive in Ambon by August 30 at the latest.

The municipality of Ambon plans to organize a welcoming ceremony to celebrate the arrival of all the participants of the yacht race on August 31.

"The welcoming ceremony will be held at the `Merdeka' or Freedom Square, where the participants of the race and residents of Ambon are expected to assemble," Anthony Latuheru, a secretary with the Ambon administration said on Saturday.

The ceremony will feature a Maluku traditional dance and song performances, as well as local cuisine.

A number of sporting events will also be held at the Amahusu and Latuhalat villages in the Nusaniwe sub-district of Ambon on September 1.

"The event will include games such as beach volleyball, tug of war and several other traditional sports," Latuheru stated.

The Darwin to Ambon Yacht Race and Rally is an event, which includes the exploration of around 17,000 islands located in the Indonesian archipelago, and is jointly organized under the aegis of the sister city programme started by the cities of Ambon and Darwin.

The international yacht race 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 Incorporated.

The DAYR was started by the Cruising Yacht Association of the Northern Territory Incorporated (CYANT) in 1976. The 600-nautical miles downwind race saw six yachts participating in its inaugural year in 1976.

For months after that, former race participants have narrated stories about `champagne sailing`, Ambon`s overwhelming hospitality, its loving and friendly people, the region's scenic beauty, its cultural diversity, and the food on offer, which makes the race and rally an annual event that should not to be missed.

Around 100 yachts participated in the contest in 1998, and participation reached its pinnacle in 1999 with around 140 yachts from different countries wanting to take part in the race. However, the event had to be cancelled that year, in wake of sectarian conflict breaking out in Maluku.

The event was not held for the next eight years after that. But the race was revived in 2007 after peace returned in Maluku, also known as the Spice Islands.

However, the number of participants in this year's race has dropped to nine from 19 last year.

The Ambon mayor says he is optimistic that the number of participants will rise significantly in 2013.

He also promised that the Ambon administration will present a superior traditional, cultural and art performance next year, and provide improved services and facilities for the race participants.

"The DAYR committee is convinced that around 30 to 50 yachts will take part in DAYR 2013," the mayor said while welcoming crew members and the skipper of the Australian Maid."

Louhenapessy pointed out that he is happy, because the tourist rush in the region has not been affected by the drop in the number of participants.

More than 100 tourists are expected to visit the area, including 70 crew members along with 40 of their supporters, who will be arriving via a chartered plane on August 30, he added.

He also pointed out that even though there were only nine yachts participating in the race this year, the Governor General of the Northern Territory took out the time to personally flag off the yachts before they departed from Darwin on August 25. ***2***

(f001/INE/A014/INE)