Micky Arison - Sirona III - Oceanfast - 56.4 metres - 2004

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Superyacht Sirona III is owned by businessman Micky Arison, also owner of Mylin IV.

Micky Arison is chairman and CEO of Carnival Corp., the world's largest cruise operator, and majority owner of the NBA's Miami Heat. Arison, who was born on June 29, 1949, is also among the world's richest businessmen, with his wealth pegged at $6.1 billion by Forbes magazine in 2006.
Arison was raised in the cruise business and learned the ropes early from his father Ted Arison, who founded Carnival Cruise Lines with one ship in 1972. Ted Arison was also the primary backer in the effort to bring the Heat to Miami. Its inaugural season was 1988-89.
Micky Arison dropped out of the University of Miami to work at Carnival. He started in their sales department, served as reservations manager in 1974, became vice president of passenger traffic in 1976, and moved up to president in 1979. He was appointed chairman of the board of directors in 1990, succeeding his father. Arison has overseen a number of major acquisitions by the company that went public in 1987. In 1989, he orchestrated the purchase of the Holland America Line. He also led the purchase of Seabourn Cruise Line and the Cunard Line, operator of the Queen Mary 2. He oversaw the acquisition of P&O Princess Cruises in 2002 in a deal valued at about $8.2 million, making the company the largest cruise operator with 82 ships. It had revenues of more than $11.8 billion in 2006.
In 1995, Arison bought out a couple of his father's partners in the Heat and took control of the team, installing famed NBA coach Pat Riley to lead the franchise. His son, Nick Arison, is now one of his limited partners in a group that also includes Julio Iglesias, Raanan Katz, Sidney Kimmel and Robert Sturges. When the Heat's original home, Miami Arena, was deemed obsolete without revenue-generating suites, Arison forged a public-private partnership with Miami-Dade County to build AmericanAirlines Arena, which opened on Biscayne Bay on Dec. 31, 1999.
Arison is paying for the majority of the $213 million arena, which also received $60 million from the state and $6.4 million annually from the county for maintenance and operation. The team's fortunes took off with the drafting of guard Dwyane Wade in 2003 and the trade for superstar center Shaquille O'Neal in 2004. The pair led the team to its first NBA championship in 2006. Arison took the NBA's Larry O'Brien Trophy on a world tour, with stops in Italy and China, to visit cruise ship operations. A passionate, but reserved fan, Arison can be found at most games sitting with his wife Madeleine and sometimes Nick and his daughter Kelly at the broadcaster's table at AmericanAirlines Arena.
He was elected chairman of the NBA Board of Governors in October 2005. Arison has received a number of honors worldwide for his work in the cruise industry, including being named an "Officer of the French Legion of Honor" by French President Jacques Chirac and earning an honorary doctorate in naval architecture from the University of Genoa. Arison supports numerous arts and community organizations, including the New World Symphony, Miami City Ballet, Jackson Memorial Foundation and the Community Partnership for the Homeless. He donated his $2.4 million annual bonus Carnival from 2004 to tsunami relief efforts and $2.5 million from his 2005 bonus to hurricane relief.

Arison is also Managing General Partner of the Miami Heat.

In 14 years as managing general partner of the Miami HEAT, Micky Arison has guided the franchise to unprecedented heights, including bringing South Florida its first NBA championship in 2006. As the leader of the most successful cruise operation in the world, the 60-year-old Arison and his family have always been involved with the team. Although his father, Ted, brought the NBA franchise to South Florida in 1988, it has only been since Micky took control in 1995 that the HEAT has evolved into one of the NBA’s top organizations.

Arison, who was elected Chairman of the NBA Board of Governors in October 2005 and served a three-year term, brought to the HEAT the same standard of excellence that propelled Carnival Corporation & plc into a global vacation leader. One of Arison’s first moves was to dramatically re-shape the franchise by hiring Pat Riley, one of the NBA's all-time winningest coaches, as Miami's President.

Arison and Riley acquired franchise cornerstones Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway, Dwyane Wade, and Shaquille O’Neal. They also strengthened their roster by making a blockbuster 13-player trade, the largest in NBA history, in which they acquired James Posey, Jason Williams and All-Star Antoine Walker, all key cogs in Miami’s title run.

Together, Arison and Riley have built an organization that is considered one of the NBA’s elite and most competitive franchises. In addition to winning the 2006 NBA championship, with Arison and Riley at the helm Miami has made the playoffs in 11 of the last 14 seasons, winning seven division titles, one Eastern Conference championship and advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals three times. The seven division titles the HEAT has captured over the last 14 years are the most in the Eastern Conference during that span. Arison showed his commitment to the fans of South Florida when he worked successfully with Miami-Dade public officials to keep the heart and soul of the HEAT in downtown Miami. The result of his diligence was an innovative public-private partnership that together built the county-owned state-of-the-art AmericanAirlines Arena that fans enjoy and the HEAT calls home.

Arison grew up in the cruise business and spent the better part of two decades learning it from the ground up before becoming chairman in 1990. Arison followed his education with a two-year stint in the Carnival Cruise Lines sales department. He became reservations manager in 1974, and took over the post of vice president of passenger traffic in 1976, succeeding to the presidency in 1979. In 1990, he was appointed chairman of the company’s board of directors.

In 1987, the company went public, generating $400 million for future expansion. As Carnival continued its growth through the traditional avenue of new ship construction, Arison also sought to expand the company’s cruise operations by entering new market segments of the industry.

In 1989, Arison engineered the acquisition of the venerable Holland America Line, giving Carnival entry to the premium segment of the cruise industry. Arison also led the company’s effort in the acquisition of ultra-luxury leader Seabourn Cruise Line, as well as Cunard Line, operator of the largest ocean liner in the world, the 150,000-ton Queen Mary 2, and Costa Cruises, Europe’s number one cruise company.

Arison also spearheaded Carnival Corporation’s acquisition of P&O Princess Cruises, one of the most recognizable names in travel, in a deal valued at approximately $8.2 billion. The combined Carnival/Princess group, named Carnival Corporation & plc, is the largest cruise operator by far, with a diverse portfolio of brands catering to vacationers from all over the world. The Carnival/Princess entity is truly a global vacation leader with its stock trading on both the New York and London exchanges Under his direction, Carnival Corporation & plc has grown into the largest, most successful cruise operator in the world. Arison’s keen attention to marketing and growth priorities has also increased revenues from approximately $600 million in 1988 to more than $14.6 billion in 2008.

Today, as chairman and CEO of Carnival Corporation & plc, he oversees diversified travel and tourism holdings, including cruise ships serving virtually every market segment -- from contemporary to ultra-luxury -- as well as leading tour operators and hotel chains in Alaska and the Yukon Territory.

The Arison family and Carnival Corporation & plc is devoted to South Florida and over the years has supported a variety of arts-related and community service organizations. Organizations supported by the Arison family and Carnival include the New World Symphony, National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts, Miami Children’s Museum, Jackson Memorial Foundation, Miami City Ballet, Miami Art Museum, American Red Cross, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, United Way, Community Partnership for Homeless and many others.

Arison’s contributions to the cruise industry have been recognized by a wide range of international organizations. He has been named an “Officer of the French Legion of Honor” – the country’s highest civilian honor – by French President Jacques Chirac, received a honorary doctorate in naval architecture from the University of Genoa, and has been awarded the Decoration of Commander, First Class, of the Order of the Lion of Finland by the President of the Republic of Finland. He has also been awarded the insignia of “Onorificenza al Merito della Repubblica Italiana” by the President of Italy, which confers that country’s highest title on a civilian.

Read more about superyachts and superyacht owners at http://www.superyachtfan.com/

Including the Superyacht Owners Register, the most comprehensive overview of superyacht owners.