Inaugural exhibition in Perdana Botanical Gardens to coincide with Formula One
INTERNATIONAL football stars Fabio Cannavaro, Fernando Morientes and Michel Salgado will attend the inaugural Bonsai and Orchid Exhibition KL 2012 at Perdana Botanical Gardens on March 24.
The festival, from March 23 to 27, is inspired by Kuala Lumpur mayor Tan Sri Ahmad Fuad Ismail. It is an eco-tourism product for Malaysians as well as international tourists in conjunction with the Formula One in Sepang.
As part of the exhibition, there will be a garden hunt, graffiti competition, flower arrangement competition, cultural show, children’s show, talks and demonstration on bonsai and orchid as well as stalls selling gardening peripherals, fruits, herb and vegetable plants, hydrophonic products and books on landscape and horticulture.
Thing of beauty: Fuad (second from right) admiring the orchids which will be displayed at the Bonsai and Orchid Exhibition KL 2012. With him are (from right) Ng, Fonseka and Normah.
Fuad is confident that the event will draw interest from various groups.
He said the event would be made an annual exhibition in Kuala Lumpur City Hall’s calendar.
“We hope to open the event to an international stage but it all depends on the feedback we receive. The impact from this event will also be beneficial toward the botanical gardens as a must-visit place.
“The event isn’t a duplication of the Putrajaya flower festival as it is focused on bonsai and orchid. Visitors will be able to learn about the beautiful plants.
“A lot of people are interested in the plants but they may lack knowledge, so this will be a great opportunity for them to get first-hand information from the experts,” he said at a press conference to announce the exhibition recently.
Also present were Bonsai N Stone Academy president I.S. Ng, Orchid Society of Selangor and Federal Territory president Datuk C. Fonseka and DBKL deputy director-general Datuk Normah Malik.
～News courtesy of The Star～
Vettel wins F1 Malaysian Grand Prix
Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel won the Formula One Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday, giving the German back-to-back wins to open the season.
The pole sitter led throughout to win by 3.2 seconds from McLaren's Jenson Button, with Renault's Nick Heidfeld hanging on for third.
Vettel's Red Bull teammate Mark Webber recovered from a poor start, using a four-stop strategy around the Sepang International circuit to claim fourth place, with Ferrari's Felipe Massa fifth.
Ferrari's Fernando Alonso and McLaren's Lewis Hamilton had a collision in the closing laps that dropped them down to sixth and seventh respectively.
Sauber's Kamui Kobayashi took eighth place, while Mercedes' Michael Schumacher made a very late passing maneuver to take ninth from Force India's Paul Di Resta, who took the last point in 10th.
Vettel's victory was made more impressive by the malfunctioning of the KERS device on the Red Bull, with the German told midway through the race that he could no longer use it.
Webber also appeared to have problems with it, dropping from third to ninth after just one lap. By contrast, both Renaults made storming starts, with Heidfeld moving from sixth to second by the second corner.
With rain surprisingly holding off throughout, the closing stages developed into a fight to see who could make their tires last longest. Button used his trademark tire management to claim second.
Heidfeld came under intense pressure in the final laps but managed to hold off Webber.
One of the major talking points was a collision between old rivals Hamilton and Alonso with 10 laps to go. The Ferrari driver tried a switchback passing move on Hamilton but did not quite measure the distance correctly, and snapped off the left endplate of his front wing by nudging Hamilton's right rear tire.
Alonso had to pit for a new front wing, while Hamilton struggled thereafter as his tires degraded, and was passed by Heidfeld then Webber before admitting defeat and pitting for new rubber with only three laps left.
~News courtesy of The Star~
Plenty of action with F1 fever heating up
ADVANCE WARNING
APRIL 9
SEPANG GO KART CIRCUIT, SEPANG, SELANGOR
On the Grid for the Dance Party of the Year:
SPEEDZONE, the Official Grand Prix Festival 2011.
Known for bringing together some of the world’s top DJs and producers, Speedzone has earned a top tier reputation for its high quality event production, with sound and cutting edge lighting and visuals that act as a perfect complement its pulse racing line ups.
This Malaysian Grand Prix season, Speedzone Tour 2011 kicks the energy into overdrive with its strongest line up ever.
Eddie Halliwell (UK), Sander Kleinenberg (NL), Darren Emerson (UK) and Seb Fontaine (UK) are joined by some of Malaysia’s top jocks Terence C, Ian Ross and Phil K Lee for a late night session of driving electronic music.
Advance tickets for this stellar superstar party are priced at RM35 and are available now from AirAsia RedTix (www.airasiaredtix.com) with tickets on the night selling at RM55.
Ticketing Hotline at +6010-788 2323. Hotline is operational from 9am-6pm on weekdays. More details can be found at www.speedzonetour.com.my.
-News courtesy of The Star-
Puma launches pop-up store in the run-up to F1 weekend
SPORTS lifestyle company, Puma had the crowd excited at its Motorsport Pop-Up Store in Pavilion when 20 Ferraris pulled up.
The display was to celebrate the launch of its pop-up store, the first of its kind in Malaysia.
The custom-built display and sales showcase gave F1 and motorsport enthusiasts a new site to browse, appreciate and purchase the latest Puma motorsport and Puma Ferrari Licensed Collection.
Puma Malaysia head of marketing Gabriel Yap said they were happy to introduce the concept store in Malaysia.
Fast cars: The Ferrari cars on display drew the crowds at the launch of the store.
“This store is designed for all things related to fashion, lifestyle and motorsports, all of which Malaysians are passionate about.
“For this reason, we wanted to give Malaysians a new shopping experience where they can also get their hands on limited edition Puma Ferrari and Puma motorsport merchandise.”
The store is in Malaysia for a limited time only.
It will be positioned at Pavilion (near La Bodega) until April 1 and will move to the Sepang F1 Circuit from April 8-10, in conjunction with the F1 Grand Prix.
To celebrate the opening of its store, Puma has several in-store promotions.
Innovative: The pop-up store is the first of its kind in Malaysia.
The first three shoppers with any purchase each day are given a chance to win a Puma Ferrari Cap.
Loyal shoppers are also rewarded with Puma premiums including a free Puma keychain with every purchase worth RM250 and a free Puma umbrella with a minimum spending of RM400 on Puma Motorsport products.
To add to the excitement, Puma is giving its customers an opportunity to win a pair of Malaysian Grand Prix Garnet grandstand tickets worth RM1,400 upon purchase of Puma Motorsport merchandise.
The pop-up store is part of a regional initiative to promote Puma Motorsport Collection range. Malaysia is one of only three countries chosen for this initiative. It was first launched in Korea and will be heading to Singapore in September 2011, after completing the Malaysian leg.
-News courtesy of The Star-
Striding man brings invitations at F1 race party
JOHNNIE Walker, the award-winning Scotch whisky and global partner of Formula 1 team Vodafone McLaren Mercedes since 2005 is once again bringing the ultimate race party experience to Kuala Lumpur, the Black Circuit Lounge.
VVIP guests on the invite list were pleasantly surprised when Johnnie Walker’s Striding Man turned up to personally deliver their bespoken invitations to the event.
As the official race party of the Malaysian Grand Prix, this exclusive and highly anticipated event kicks off at 8pm on April 9 from 8pm onward at a secret venue only revealed to invited guests.
Personal touch: Johnnie Walker’s Striding Man and his two assistants personally hand delivered invitations to the Black Circuit Lounge on April 9.
Johnnie Walker will provide Malaysians an insider-access opportunity to live the style and global glamour of an authentic Grand Prix race party. The most anticipated by-invitation-only event will play host to the crème de la crème of Malaysian society and loyal fans of Johnnie Walker.
“The Johnnie Walker Striding Man has been an iconic symbol of our brand since first sketched by famous cartoonist Tom Browne on a napkin over lunch with the Walker brothers in 1908.
“Today, the Striding Man is most closely associated with the global ‘Keep Walking’ campaign and has come to embody the pioneering spirit of progress that Johnnie Walker stands for.
“Having a modern incarnation of the Striding Man hand-deliver the invitations to the Black Circuit Lounge reinforces the exclusivity of this highly anticipated event.
“We received different reactions from the Striding Man’s appearance; a few guests were speechless when he appeared, while others felt privileged to be receiving their invitation from the masculine icon himself.” said Johnnie Walker brand manager Charles Wright.
Guests at the Black Circuit Lounge will be treated to VVIP privileges and a high-flying lifestyle enjoyed by the likes of McLaren Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, successful overachievers constantly in pursuit of progress so true to the mantra of Keep Walking.
This luxury race party will feature international entertainment of the highest sophistication and glamour from the US, Hong Kong and Malaysia.
The party promises to bring a true VVIP experience that should not be missed.
For your chance to win tickets to the Johnnie Walker Black Circuit Lounge, step inside www.blackcircuit.com.my/facebook
-News courtesy of The Star-
Thing of beauty: Fuad (second from right) admiring the orchids which will be displayed at the Bonsai and Orchid Exhibition KL 2012. With him are (from right) Ng, Fonseka and Normah.