Shosholoza support Aids awareness

With the biggest red ribbon logo in the world

It is arguably one of the biggest Aids red ribbons in the globe and South Africa’s Team Shosholoza has re-iterated their commitment to keep flying it in support of the fight against HIV/Aids when they return to Valencia, Spain, next year to race in the 2007 America’s Cup.

In a statement issued to mark World Aids Day, Team Shosholoza Managing Director Captain Salvatore Sarno said every opportunity had to be taken to tell the world about the challenges facing “each and every one of us living and working in Africa where so many millions of people are stricken by HIV/Aids related illnesses and Aids itself.

“As a sporting event the America’s Cup is on a par with the Olympics and the Soccer World Cup. Media coverage is huge with the cumulative television viewer ship alone expected to top 4-billion worldwide by next year. It would be hard to find a more influential platform.”

Team Shosholoza’s vast Aids red ribbon logo is emblazoned across a towering 350sqm spinnaker flown from yacht Shosholoza’s 35m high mast. It caused a stir when it was used for the first time during America’s Cup class racing events in Valencia earlier this year.

The concept was first launched in Cape Town on World Aids Day in December 2004 when Shosholoza’s original training yacht flew an Aids spinnaker in Table Bay in support of a Red Ribbon Campaign around the theme of "Everyone can make a difference" launched by the local non-profit organisation Wola Nani which assists people living with HIV and Aids.

At the time Wola Nani said that by simply wearing the internationally recognised symbol of World Aids Day people could become a "walking billboard” to show they cared.

Capt Sarno, who is also chairman of Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), South Africa, always wears an Aids red ribbon badge on the lapel of his suit at work or a beaded badge on his sailing gear when in Valencia. 'We see people dying every week from HIV/AIDS related diseases in our company. It is very real and very close to us. These are people that we know, who are part of our close environment. It is not something we just read about in the papers.

"MSC set up a special fund some years ago to support and offer assistance to those affected by the disease and to provide them with the necessary drugs. Our human resources division also runs regular courses to promote awareness around HIV/Aids," said Capt Sarno.

He added MSC's commitment to HIV/Aids awareness programmes presented a way to pay back their debt to the country for the opportunities it had given the company to grow into one of the biggest shipping lines in the world. "In 1990 when others were losing faith in the country we showed our optimism for the future in South Africa by investing heavily here and it has paid off enormously for us. South Africa has been the backbone of our business and become our most important trading area with over 60% of our revenue coming from the region."