Inaugural Dragon Boat Festival proves attractive

THE INAUGURAL Jamaica Dragon Boat Festival swept through the island last weekend with big crowds descending on the Kingston Harbour in Port Royal to see the introduction of the newest sport to the country.

The teams from the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) Coast Guard and the Chinese Benevolent Association (CBA) hunkered down in the specialised dragon-themed boats to dominate the event and take top honours in the first ever local competition to be staged on the island on Saturday and Sunday at the Grande Hotel Excelsior.

JDF and CBA were given the same time 1:04.257 while the Chinese Embassy ended the race in 1:05.660 after being loudly cheered on by a very animated audience that assembled on the hotel’s dock and viewing gallery.

The CBA captain Johnny Wong was very pleased with his team’s performance.

“We hosted it. First time ever in Jamaica — history — and I think we did very well. Next year we’re going to do it even better. The team feels great. First ever in Jamaica, feels very great about it. We are very happy that we even joined the win.”

“Well, for us, we are excited about being a part of the competition. We’re excited that we were invited to be a part of the first-ever competition. We prepared on Saturdays and Sundays over by Port Royal. We would have trained in the morning and we would have also put in the effort, put in the work. So we came out here, we had a team plan, we had a goal and we delivered on that goal. “Well, I’m very proud of my team” said Tiran Maxwell, captain of the JDF team.

Jamaica were crowned Caribbean Dragon Boat race champions ahead of the Bahamas and Team Misfits — an invitational team with members from Canada, the United States, China, and Trinidad. Dragon boat racing was established in Trinidad & Tobago some time ago and in the Bahamas for about four years now.

The competition featured 11 teams from 12 countries. Each team had a minimum of 12 members, which included 10 paddlers, one drummer and a captain who steers the boat. The competition attracted competitors from the Bahamas Canada, China, Germany, Philippines, Russia, Spain, Suriname, Tajikistan, Trinidad & Tobago, USA and Jamaica.

Some of the other teams that displayed their skills were UWI Confucius, Mckay Security, CHEC Construction, Purity Bakery, General Foods, and Hydra.

Members of the public, who came from all across the country even after it was finished, took up an offer to experience what a dragon boat race was like.

The patrons fit into four boats after a short orientation.

Allan Beckford, general manager of the Sports Development Foundation (SDF) welcomed the experience.

WONDERFUL EVENT

“I must congratulate the organisers of the Dragon Boat Festival today. Wonderful event, so wonderful that they actually invited newcomers to do it and I was one who had that opportunity. So what it shows, it is a sport for everybody and the tourism potential of this sport is fantastic.”

Race director, Kerry Chow out of Canada is certified by the sport’s governing body, the International Dragon Boat Federation (IDBF). He had high praise for the competitors and the Jamaican audience who embraced the sport.

“It’s been amazing. The amount of people who are enthusiastic about the sport they’ve never seen. The local people who actually came down, raced the race, brought their family was amazing.

“I actually expected a little bit less and you exceeded that by a mile. When we look at the overall result, the Chinese Benevolent Association and the coast guard are new, new to this sport but they were right there with the CBA team because it’s their sport. It was amazing watching teams take on each other on the water, but coming off the water, the handshakes, the hugs, the friendship was amazing,” said Chow.

Chairman of the organising committee Dalton Yap was very happy.

“It was thrilling, it was exhilarating. The races were just full of fun, very competitive and very happy that this competition has come to such an exciting end,” he said.

“Jamaicans thank you so much for turning out in droves. We love you. It shows that you have a passion for the sport, you have an understanding,” he said.

Yap, in his role of president of the Jamaica Dragon Boat Federation received the instrument of membership into the IDBF from PanAm Federation president Franco Sui Chong during the opening ceremony on the first day.

“Before I make this presentation, I’ll just like to let you know that this is a wish come true for me. It has been 15 years. Fifteen years that I’ve been knocking on Jamaica to start dragon boating in Jamaica. You’re introducing a sport, an international sport that will soon be in the Olympics. You’re introducing an item that’s for sport tourism. To me, dragon boating is the ultimate sport tourism product. One day, I hope Jamaica will host the Pan-American Dragon Boat Championships, which will bring over 2,500 people, and the International Dragon Boat Championships, which brings 8,000 athletes. Could you imagine what that will do to the Jamaican economy?