Antarctica Expedition stamps from Australia

 

 

Date of Issue : 9 October 2013

Australia Post will issue new stamps on Australasian Antarctic Expedition (AAE) on 9th October 2013. This is the third in a four-year program celebrating the centenary of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (AAE).The stamps in this issue capture key moments in the year following the deaths of Ninnis and Mertz, and Mawson’s return to the base camp only to see the Aurora sailing away.

Mawson joined the small party of men who had remained behind to assist in the search for him. Over the next year, the group undertook significant scientific work in the harsh isolation of the region.

Walter Hannam – original wireless operator on the expedition who returned to Australia on the Aurorabefore the return of Mawson; Frank Wild – leader of the Western Party and third-in-command of the expedition; Extreme weather – a long, bleak winter faced the group who remained at base camp; Scientific work – kept the men occupied during the long, bleak winter; Antarctic wildlife – Weddell Seal and Cape Petrel.

The stamps are presented in similar se-tenant combinations as in previous issues of this series.The minisheet shows the returning Western Base party and the map of Mawson’s party indicating the place and date of Mertz’s death.

Source: Australian Post

New stamps from Czech Republic

ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships

Czech  Post issued a new postage stamp to commemorate 2013 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships. 

The 2013 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships  took place in the Troja Centre, Prague, Czech Republic. The championships will be run on 11-15 September 2013.At the same time, the hosting Czech Canoe Union  celebrates 100 years of its existence.

Ships have sailed through Czech rivers through the ages. They were used for trade, travelling and hunting expeditions. One of the first documented sources mentions the Czech knight Zachař of Pašiněves who brought a kayak from Scandinavia and used it for travel.

The establishment of an independent Czechoslovakia, in 1918, boosted the development of water sports. The Canoe Union of the Czech Kingdom was reorganised into the Czech Canoe Union and focused mainly on water tourism. Its activities involved the creation of new camps alongside rivers and the organisation of various water sport competitions.

In 1925, the Czech Canoe Union became the fifth member of the International Canoe Federation. The Czech representatives initiated the first European Championships in Prague in 1933. Following intensive negotiations and the successful championships, canoeing sports became a part of the Olympics during the 1936 Berlin games. The Czech speed canoeists achieved great success by World War II. In recent years, the two-time Olympic champion Martin Doktor made the greatest contribution to the success of Czech canoeism.
A new discipline, water slalom, started to emerge in the 1930s. The first Czechoslovak competition took place in 1937 in Brno. One of the most successful Czech slalomists in recent time is the two-time Olympic champion Štěpánka Hilgertová.

Presently, the Czech Canoe Union has three branches; each works independently and is fully responsible for its own development. These are speed canoeing, white-water canoeing, and water tourism.
The achievements of Czech canoeing sports also include the privilege to organise European and world championships: Canoe Sprint World Championships in 1958; Canoe Slalom World Championships in 1967; Junior Canoe Sprint World Championships in 1993; Junior Canoe Slalom World Championships in 1996; European Canoe Slalom Championships in 1998; and Canoe Marathon World Championships in 2002.

Source: Czech Republic Post