"Coastal Renaissance" Ready to Promote Vancouver 2010

During a very traditional launching ceremony, the four Chiefs of the Host First Nations of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (the Lil’wat, Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh) officially inaugurated the ship, the “Coastal Renaissance”, and blessed it for its future duty. David Emerson, Canadian Minister of International Trade, as well as Kevin Falcon, British Columbia Minister of Transportation, German Prime Minister of Schleswig-Holstein, Peter Harry Carstensen, and Klaus Tscheuschner, Lord Mayor of Flensburg, were amongst the guests and dignitaries attending the launching ceremony.

After the black covering on the side of the vessel was pulled away to reveal a full-length mural promoting the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the attendees had the chance to tour the ferry and enjoy a typical Canadian barbeque afterwards.

In addition to the completed ship, FSG will build two more Super-Coastal class ferries, the “Coastal Inspiration” and the “Coastal Celebration”, which will be the largest double-ended ferries in the world, with a capacity of 1,650 passengers and 370 vehicles. The ferries will be used from 2008 onwards on the major routes between Vancouver Island and the mainland.

In the upcoming months, the ships will act as swimming ambassadors, promoting the Vancouver 2010 Games on their way to British Columbia, passing London, the Panama Canal, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle.