It’s not just all racing for the girls from the Port Douglas Outrigger Canoe Club. Saturday morning training was cancelled and instead a precious cargo was paddled around the marina and on to ANZAC Park.

Club President Ingrid Juchem said the opportunity to escort the famous trophy was too good to pass up.

"For many years Calcutta night, the night before the Melbourne Cup at the Court House Hotel, has been the major fundraiser for the club. So having the cup in a canoe was a great honour.”

The Melbourne Cup, on a PR tour around Australia, was presented to the public before being flown to the Great Barrier Reef for a unique photo opportunity.