STAR reporter Hamish Hooper has been crowned the overall Inmarsat Media Award Winner of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12.
He was presented with a trophy and a 10,000 Euro (US$ 12,289) prize for the best overall contribution to race coverage at a glittering ceremony marking the end of the race in Galway, Ireland.
The New Zealander's work as a Media Crew Member (MCM) constantly shone – as he documented life onboard Camper with videos, photos, blogs and audio clips – during the 39,000 nautical-mile nine-month race.
Highlights included telling the story of the yacht's damage and massive repair during Leg 5 of the race, and capturing the moment when helmsman Roberto 'Chuny' Bermúdez had to swerve to avoid a whale in the North Atlantic.
Rupert Pearce, chief executive of Inmarsat – the Volvo Ocean Race's official satellite communications partner – said: “Inmarsat congratulates Hamish on his well-deserved win of the Inmarsat Media Crew Member Award.
“The judges noted that his work was constant and of the highest quality throughout all nine legs of this global race.
“We are proud that our global network has brought this edition to millions more across the globe, demonstrating our seamless ease of use in the most remote environments.”
MCMs aboard each yacht used Inmarsat's FleetBroadband to send live and store-and-forward video footage.
Inmarsat's technology has been a key enabler for all aspects of this year's race, used for position reporting, weather updates and safety communications, as well as for sending video footage or photos of the action.
