Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/191652
41 Events maltatoday, SUNDAY, 13 OCTOBER 2013 Top award for MSC Cruises at Seatrade Europe 2013 MSC Cruises celebrated a successful first day (24 September) of Seatrade Europe, the leading trade event of the European cruise industry held biennially in Hamburg, as MSC Cruises Executive Chairman Pierfrancesco Vago received the Seatrade European Cruise Personality of the Year 2013 award. During the seventh edition of the Seatrade Insider Cruise Awards, held during the Opening Conference session at Hamburg Messe, Pierfrancesco Vago was named European Cruise Personality of the Year, an award sponsored by V. Ships and selected by Seatrade and V. Ships from nominations received. In selecting Vago for this prestigious award, Seatrade Insider editor Mary Bond said, "As CEO of MSC Cruises Pierfrancesco Vago guided the business through a series of strategic moves which has seen the fleet grow three-fold through a €6 billion new build programme, with the most recent new vessel MSC Preziosa, launched earlier this year. His leadership of over 15,500 employees in 45 countries is dynamic, open-minded and characterised by a focus on team building." On presenting the award, Per Bjornsen, Commercial Director of V.Ships Leisure, said: "V.Ships sponsor this award in the memory of the late Mauro Terrevazzi who was the chairman of V.Ships and a visionary of the modern cruise industry. It is a great pleasure to honour Pierfrancesco Vago. Under his leadership MSC Cruises has and MSC Lirica. MSC Cruises is the only company in the world to receive the "7 Golden Pearls" award from the Bureau Veritas in recognition of its high level of quality management and environmental responsibility. MSC has also achieved ISO 9001 and ISO 22000 certification for the quality and food safety of all aspects of its catering, both on shore and on board. MSC Cruises believes that global leadership brings increased responsibility towards the physical and human environments in which it operates. As such, a long term partnership with UNICEF was undertaken in 2009 to fund a community project aimed at providing disadvantaged children in Brazil with a quality education. To date, MSC Cruises has raised over two million euros for the initiative. EDGE/3G, HSDPA 42Mbps, HSUPA 5.7Mbps, Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity, memory comprising 16/32GB Internal and 1GB RAM, LED-backlit IPS TFT, capacitive touchscreen, 16M colours, 8MP camera with full HD video and secondary 1.2MP camera with HD video, GPS with A-GPS support – and so much more … making the user experience of the iPhone 5s simply outof-this-world! The iPhone 5s retails at €799, but customers opting for one of GO's limitless mobile plans can get it for MSC Cruises Executive Chairman Pierfrancesco Vago (centre) received the Seatrade European Cruise Personality of the Year 2013 award developed to become the world's largest privately owned cruise line. This has been achieved through the implementation of a clearly defined strategy with enough flexibility to adapt when the right opportunity arises." MSC Cruises is the market leading cruise company in the Mediterranean, South Africa and Brazil and operates across the globe. MSC Cruises sails throughout the year in the Mediterranean and offers a wide range of seasonal itineraries in southern Africa, northern Europe, the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean, the French Antilles, South America, the Canary Islands and the United Arab Emirates. Its modern fleet comprises twelve ships: Fantasiaclass MSC Preziosa, MSC Divina, MSC Splendida and MSC Fantasia; Musica-class MSC Magnifica, MSC Poesia, MSC Orchestra, and MSC Musica; and Lirica-class MSC Sinfonia, MSC Armonia, MSC Opera €199 with LIMITLESS99, €499 with LIMITLESS60 and €599 with LIMITLESS35 when signing up for a 2-year agreement. For further details on the iPhone 5s, customers are welcome to drop in at any one of GO's retail outlets or exclusive resellers in Malta and Gozo where they can subscribe to the LIMITLESS plans. They can call anytime on 146 free from a GO mobile connection or 79 222146 from other lines, call Freephone 80 072121 or visit www.go.com.mt. Terms and conditions apply Hamilton Travel are the exclusive General Sales Agents of MSC Cruises in the Maltese Islands iPhone 5s – first from GO! GO is the first mobile provider in Malta to make the iPhone 5s available to customers at its retail outlets in Malta and Gozo. The latest smartphone from Apple has amazing features that include the new Apple fingerprint sensor, a new 64-bit A7 chip, new operating system iOS 7, an upgraded camera and an abundance of exceptional apps and more – features that make the iPhone 5s a must-have particularly for technology-savvy mobile users. iPhone 5s is built on the latest technology that make it ahead of its time, boasts a wealth of key advantages including iOS 7 with dual-core 1.7GHz processor, quad band network Deep Stacks Poker inks three-year deal with Malta's Dragonara Casino DeepStacks Poker Tour, the fastestgrowing tournament circuit in the world, is continuing its international expansion, adding Malta's Dragonara Casino to the 2014 schedule as part of a three-year deal. The DSPT-Malta event will take place in November 2014, as a kickoff to Dragonara's new poker venue, celebrating the expansion of the current casino that reinforces its position as the foremost gaming property in Malta. In addition to the €550 Main Event, the DSPT-Malta series will feature a €2,500 High Roller and numerous smaller side events. "As soon as we started looking at our 2014 international stops, I was focused on bringing DSPT to Malta," said DeepStacks CEO Chris Torina. "Looking at their beautiful resort, their amazing history, their expansion plans and in dealing with their incredible staff, I was immediately drawn to Dragonara. I can't be happier to partner DeepStacks with such a fine property." The Dragonara Casino is a 19th century palace that was converted into Malta's first casino. Next year will mark the 50th Anniversary of the casino and it is befitting to organize the beginning of the series during this year. The Dragonara Casino is widely considered as one of the most play- er-friendly properties in Europe and one of the best gaming properties in the Mediterranean, offering a rich selection of live table games and slot machines. In 2014, the Dragonara Casino will be expanding its footprint into a new state-of-the-art gaming venue including amongst other things a purposely-built venue for international poker events. "We are very excited to team up with DSPT and bring their series to our Casino," commented Johann Schembri- Managing Director of Dragonara Casino. "Our investment in expanding our footprint is in line with attracting Poker Events of this caliber. We look forward to welcoming DSPT to Malta and are certain that the event will be one of the most sought after events in the market." The Malta event will be 360-degree live streamed on DeepStacks. com, giving poker fans around the world a chance to watch the Main Event final table action as it unfolds. The full DeepStacks 2014 schedule, including five international stops, will be released later this year. About The DeepStacks Poker Tour The DeepStacks Poker Tour is a domestic and international tournament series focused on increasing player fields and prize pools through our televised events, pro player participation, great structures and unique 360 and RFID live stream programming. The Tour is designed to reach a mainstream demographic, utilizing its strong casino partnerships and comprehensive marketing campaigns to fuel the growth of its tournaments. DeepStacks Poker Tour is the exclusive US poker tour partner of Mohegan Sun with two annual events per year, including the televised DSPT World Championship in November. For more information, visitwww. DeepStacks.com. About Dragonara Casino The Dragonara Palace opened as Malta's first Casino in 1964 and was one of the first major projects to establish Malta as a prime tourist destination. The Dragonara Casino is managed by Dragonara Gaming Limited (DGL) a subsidiary of Pinnacle Gaming Group – the leading land-based operator in Malta. Since taking over the operation of the Dragonara Casino in 2010, DGL has been investing heavily to transform the Casino sector in Malta. Around 350,000 patrons visit the Casino each year making the Dragonara Casino the leading Casino in Malta. The Dragonara Casino is recognised as one of the most prestigious and established Casinos in Europe.