Frederik @ ISAF conference in Portugal

Crown Prince Frederik is currently in Portugal at the International Sailing Federation's (ISAF) annual conference, being held this year in Estoril in Portugal (he will be there 5-8 November). Frederik is a member of the Events Committee, which decides on policies and implementation of policies for all ISAF calendar events worldwide, and also major international events, team racing, the youth championships and rules determining rankings. The Events Committee also decides on the nature of competition and the rules for the Olympic Games and will be deciding and recommending which classes of sailing (ie: which boats) will be participating in the Beijing Olympics and what the courses will be.

This year is the centenary year for the ISAF, the world governing body for international sailing having been founded in 1907. The centenary will be celebrated during the annual conference, following micro, national and international events among national sailing bodies and clubs during the past year. On Monday November 5, the ISAF Hall of Fame will be inaugurated at a gala dinner and the Sailor of the Year will be named on November 6.

So far there have already been three days of conference deliberations, including the announcement of Perth, Australia as the host site of the 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships. The four yearly championships precede the next Olympic Games and the Perth championships will be the sailing qualifiers for the 2012 games.

There will be 221 submissions discussed during the 10 day conference with each one focused on some change or another to policy and rules. A hot topic will be the selection of the events for the 2012 Olympic Sailing Competition, because the sport has to reduce from eleven to ten Olympic medal events. There will be some other hot organisational topics for the sport (eg: changing the ISAF Sailing World Championships from every four years to every two years, the future of the ISAF World Cup, racing rules, etc.) and the big issue of gender representation across all ISAF committees and the ISAF Council.

Estoril
Lisbon coast: Estoril
ISAF member nations
Day two at the ISAF conference
Day three at the ISAF conference (including plans to increase focus on women's sailing, with numerous submissions on this subject from Denmark, and preparations for the Youth World Championships for the next 3 years. Denmark will host the 2008 ISAF Youth Sailing World Championships)
ISAF Hall of Fame 2007 (an extra royal connection here: the Honorary Chairman for the ISAF Sailing Hall of Fame is Frederik's uncle HM King Constantine, who is also an ISAF President of Honour)
Nominees for World Sailor of the Year
Added: ISAF Council Decide Ten Sailing Events For 2012 Olympic Games
Hall of Fame photo gallery and photo gallery 2 - both with pic of King Constantine
Sailing's most prestigious award World Sailor of the Year 2007
Photo gallery - awards night, includes pics of King Harald and King Constantine

Queen Sonja's 70th birthday

The official guest photo from Queen Sonja's 70th birthday celebration taken on the deck of the ship 'Kongeskibet Norge' in the Stavanger harbour, Norway. From left to right front row: Grand Duchess Maria Theresa, Prince Henrik, Queen Margrethe, Queen Sonja, King Harald, Queen Silvia, King Carl Gustaf and Queen Beatrix. Left to right middle row: Princess Astrid, Johan Martin Ferner, Crown Princess Maxima, Crown Prince Frederik, Crown Princess Mette Marit, Crown Prince Haakon, Crown Princess Victoria, Prince Philippe, Princess Mathilde and Crown Prince Guillaume. Left to right back row: Prince Felix, Queen Anne Marie, Princess Märtha Louise, Ari Behn, Duke Christian, Princess Alexandra S-W-B, and Count Jefferson von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth.

Today the celebrations for Queen Sonja of Norway's 70th birthday started in Stavanger, and will continue with a cruise along the coast of Southern Norway, terminating at the King and Queen’s holiday retreat at Mågerø.

Day celebrations in Stavanger


Luncheon at Hall Toll


Guests arriving to Flor and Fjære on Sør-Hidle for dinner



Celebration of The Queen's 70th birthday (programme)
Guest list for HM The Queen's 70th birthday (pdf)
VG Nett photo gallery
NRK.no photo galleries

King Harald's 70th: more of the celebrations

Some future kings and queens of Europe: Philippe and Mathilde (Belgium), Victoria (Sweden), Haakon and Mette-Marit (Norway), Frederik and Mary (Denmark), Willem-Alexander and Maxima (Netherlands). From Norway's official website

After dinner there was an outdoor concert and fireworks outside the Royal Palace in Olso. The event was broadcast on Norwegian television but quite a few members of the public braved the cold to join the celebration.



Baby bump watch?


Some others of the Danish contingent: Count Axel and Countess Jutta of Rosenborg and Count Preben Ahlefeldt-Laurvig

Read the biography of King Harold - it is quite a story.
Harald V of Norway (the Wikipedia version)


Aftenposten - Gifts for the King
Aftenposten photo gallery of the King's gifts - includes all sorts of presents from board games to a fishing rod complete with some beautiful lures, some chairs from Queen Sonia, a leather desk set from Märtha Louise and Ari Behn, wine, crystal, boxing gloves signed by Stælken Gundersen....
Aftenposten article - 'Pels gjorde susen' on the fashion choices at the museum outing (in Norwegian but has some pics)
Aftenposten TV - video clip (1:11) of the royal visit to the Norwegian folk culture museum at Bygdøy.
Side 2 video clip (2:05) at Bygdøy Museum
Aftenposten picture gallery at Bygdøy Museum
Side 2 video clip (1:06)- Queen Sonia busy taking snaps of her grandaughter Maud Angelica with her mobile
VG Nett photo gallery

Aftenposten photo gallery of the gala ball
Hola.com - 26 photo gallery of Skaugum - the house of the Crown Prince Family. King Harald and Queen Sonia lived here when they were Crown Prince and Crown Princess and Märtha Louise and Haakon spent their early childhood in the house.
TV2.dk - Kongelig invasion i Norge (Danish - Royal invasion in Norway)
TV2 photo gallery
Madeleine Glinforf's photo gallery (great job Madeleine!)

From The Sydney Morning Herald:

Mary goes fur style, Fred goes for red

Matthew Benns
February 25, 2007

WRAPPED in a fur coat and on the arm of her husband, Crown Princess Mary of Denmark arrived in Norway for a royal birthday bash this weekend.
Crown Prince Frederik took great care of his six-months pregnant wife in the slippery and snowy conditions at Oslo airport on Friday.
The Danish royal couple is in Norway to attend the 70th birthday celebrations of King Harald over the weekend. And it is certain that Princess Mary will not be overindulging at the buffet table during the royal parties.
Last week she spoke at the launch of the European Charter on Counteracting Obesity, in Copenhagen.
She said part of her role as patron of the World Health Organisation regional office for Europe, was "to generate greater public awareness about how important physical activity and a balanced diet are to our health and wellbeing, and how vital these two factors are in tackling obesity."
Certainly the princess and her husband looked the picture of health at the weekend. However, the prince's choice of red pants for the day may mean she has work to do in the more superficial areas of her husband's appearance.Source: The Sun-Herald

ADDED:
VG NettTV (1:55) - the arrivals at the gala ball

VG NettTV (1:00) - a little of the dancing at the ball

Side 2 video clip (2:05) at the museum, where we can see Alexandra SWB's husband who made it from paris where he started a new job as head of a Swiss bank in Paris not long before Christmas

siste.no photo gallery of the carriage ride. Brrrrrr!
siste.no photo series page you can click on the magnifying icon to increase size

YouTube's on King Harald's birthday celebrations (thanks for uploading MihoshiMarie!)

There have been no photos released of the private dinner on Friday night at Crown Prince Haakon's and Crown Princess Mette-Marit's home, Skaugum Estate. Should any surface we will post later.




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