- Optimists set Battle record with fourth win on the trot
- Clouds cleared to let a near-capacity crowd of 12,000 enjoy a rain-free parade
- Comment: Read what the JEP thinks
- Watch our video of yesterday’s action below
IT was a record-breaking year for the Optimists Club as they won the Battle of Flowers’ top prize for the fourth year running.
By claiming the Prix d’Honneur for their colourful entry, Eye of the Tiger, the club became the first non-parochial team in the event’s 113-year history to make it four wins in a row.
Displaying a host of different animals, including eight tigers and two monkeys, and using more than 130,000 flowers, the entry was one of the highlights of this year’s parade, which featured 25 floats, five bands and hundreds of dancers and performers.
Don’t miss the 16 page Battle supplement inside Friday’s JEP, featuring pictures of every float in the parade.
And although the Island suffered thunderstorms and torrential downpours the night before the Battle, the crowd of 12,000 that lined Victoria Avenue enjoyed a warm, rain-free event, with a real carnival atmosphere.
Receiving the Prix d’Excellence – the Battle’s second most prestigious prize – was St Brelade for their fantasy-themed float Dragonara.
And it was an especially good year for the Parish of St Peter’s team, who received six awards, including the Grand Prix des Paroisses and the Carnival Atmosphere Award, for their float, Cuban Cocktail.
Mr Battle, Craig Phillips, was joined by 19-year-old Miss Battle, Chantelle Mundy, and Miss Junior Battle, Rachel Jones (11) for a tour of the arena on their float.
Mr Phillips, who rose to fame after winning the first series of Big Brother 15 years ago and who is now a TV presenter, said: ‘It’s been brilliant – it’s totally blown my expectations out of the water. It really is so spectacular.
‘The effort that everybody has made is incredible and I think that we should take this model right across Europe and show what Jersey can do.’
Miss Mundy, who was taking part in her first parade, said that she ‘loved every second of it’.
See the full results from the parade here
‘I was having a bit of a dance with Craig and at some points we were doing a dance-off with the other floats.
‘It was really good fun and everyone seems to have enjoyed it.’
The Battle’s event director, Jackie Donald, said that the parade had been a ‘great success’.
‘It was really well received. The float quality was superb and we were very lucky with the weather,’ she said.
‘We were very near to our 14,000 capacity so it turned out to be a brilliant Battle.’
Following the results ceremony at the end of the parade, Steve Bouchard, the designer of the winning Optimists Club float, said: ‘To win once is thrilling, but to win four times in a row is kind of unbelievable.
‘The last time it was won four times in a row, the rules were different and you had to be a parish float, so we have a bit of a modern record.’
Mr Bouchard also designed a second float in this year’s parade, the parish of St Saviour’s JEP-themed float, Hot Off The Press, which celebrated the newspaper’s 125th anniversary. JEP staff also took part in the parade with Jepson.
Ray Pike, the designer of St Peter’s float, said he was very proud of his team’s achievements.
‘We’ve received a few awards over the years, but I don’t remember ever picking up the Grand Prix des Paroisses, and certainly not six awards,’ he said.
‘I wanted to get something really colourful, bright and lively with lots of music and it seems to have gone down well with the crowd and judges.’
THE crowds which lined Victoria Avenue yesterday sent a clear message to the doubters that Battle is alive and well.
Once again the teams of volunteers who created the wonderful floats will leave those lucky enough to see the procession with memories to last a lifetime.
All smiles and delighting the crowd, Miss Battle, Chantelle Mundy, and her consort, the popular former Big Brother star Craig Phillips, were the perfect leaders for this enduring spectacle.
Congratulations to all involved on another great triumph.
The debate about the future of what is still one of the flagship events of the entertainment calendar was fuelled earlier this year with the publication of a report commissioned by Economic Development.
Its author, events consultant Sarah Felton, came to some fairly damning conclusions, saying that exhibitors were very resistant to change and suggested that organisers lacked commercial savvy.
It also made a series of very sensible recommendations about how the event might be modernised.
For example, Ms Felton said that the parade could be rerouted through St Helier and a static display held in People’s Park, ideas which won the support of St Helier Constable Simon Crowcroft and town centre manager Daphne East.
The Battle should listen to these and other suggestions and invite members of the community to join a conversation that will benefit us all.
There is no doubt that Battle in some form, whether as a stand-alone event or part of a longer festival celebrating Island life, will continue to strengthen Jersey’s appeal to visitors.
But it cannot stand still.
The worst thing that organisers can do is to circle their wagons around an event and bat off those who are happy to lend their creative and commercial expertise to take Battle forward. Like those who can to breathe new life into our tourism offering more generally, they must have a vision for the future.
The Moonlight Parade will be taking place on Victoria Avenue on Friday evening. Gates open at 7.30 pm and the parade begins at 9 pm
