Sports
Dragon Boats from Across the World Race in Tampa
The International Dragon Boat Festival invades the waters of Tampa Bay. What is Dragon Boat racing, anyway?
The City of Tampa welcomed the International Dragon Boat Federation at Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park Tuesday evening, August 2nd. This is the first time the Dragon Boat Festival has been held in Tampa and only the second time it has been in the United States. (The last time was in Philadelphia, 2001) The weather was beautiful and there was genuine excitement and camaraderie in the teams.
Jack Harris, local broadcaster, stood at the helm of the event. He began with an introduction of the countries in attendance. First to be announced was Australia and last, with uproarious applause, was the United States. China, Japan, Germany and Trinidad and Tobago were some of the other teams represented.
In addition to the lively band and Dragon Boat drummers, vendors were there to feed and quench the thirst of the Dragon Boat patrons. Fans young and old - many wearing a flag in representation of their country - were there to cheer on their home team. Not surprising, a dragon danced among the crowd.
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It was a beautiful evening and wonderful way to kick-off this five-day event. The remainder of the week will include four different distance competitions, 18 competition classes and over 4000 competitors representing over 17 countries.
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2000m
All classes
10:15 am - 4:00 pm
9:00 am - 5:40 pm
Sunday, August 7
500m
Open & Women's classes
9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Where did this tradition begin?
2000 years ago Qu Yuan, a high court official of the State of Chu, was a patriot and poet who wrote passionately against the corrupt government. He ended up taking his own life in the nearby Milo River. When the locals heard of this, they immediately got in their boats and raced to find him. Their search was to no avail.
It was this race to find Qu Yuan that evolved into the first dragon boat festival.
In the Asian culture, dragons are regarded as wholesome and beneficent. Dragon boat festivals are a time to honor the dragon in some regions of China. Being that the dragon is ruler of the water world, honoring him means there will be sufficient water for rice and other crops in the coming year.
The Chinese people find this Festival to be one of the most important in their culture.
Come on. Is this a real sport?
The International Dragon Boat Federation (IDBF) became a member of the General Association of the International Sports Federation (GAISF) in 1976 and started in Hong Kong. They recognize two types of racing: Sport and Festival (which is the more traditional and informal of the two).
This same event being held here this week has also been held in Poland, Italy and even South Africa. Next year, the Festival will be back where it originated in Hong Kong.
Tell me a little about these funny looking boats.
Dragon boats range from 45 to 120 feet and are colorfully decorated with pennants, a dragon head and a dragon tail. They can vary between 10 and sometimes 80 paddlers. In addition to the paddlers, there is a drummer at the bow facing the paddlers. His job is to synchronize the paddles. Drumming also signifies the heartbeat of the dragon. At the rear of the boat is the sweep that is responsible for steering. The paddlers in the front are considered timers who set the pace for the team. One stroke consists of a reach and catch, pull, release and recovery motion.
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