Dragon Boat and Dragon Boat racing is now becoming a known sports in not only China but also all around the globe already. You will see various dragon boat races in the USA, UAE, and many other countries. If you will to watch the race, the paddling is not the only thing that will amaze you but the beat of the drums will definitely pump you heart out. In Hong Kong, you will not only see a simple dragon boat race event but the Known Dragon Boat Festival. The festival took place every Fifth Moon of the Chinese calendar, which is around May or June in the Western calendar.
The birth of the Dragon Boat Festival
The known ancient even in Hong Kong is also known as the Tuen Ng Festival to commemorate the death of Qu Yuan, a renowned Chinese National Hero. Yuan had been known of drowning himself in Mi Lo River over 2,000 years ago as a form of protest against the corrupt leaders. According to the history, Yuan’s fellowmen attempted to rescue him. In order to do that successfully, the scare the fishes away by beating the drums and threw away dumplings to avoid the fishes from eating her body.
The highlight of the Dragon Boat Festival
The festival’s real highlight is the fierce-looking dragon boats that come in lively and vibrant spectacles. Each teams’ boat that are elaborately decorated has a measurement of more than 10 meters and have beautiful carvings and paintings of dragon heads and tails that adds up the beauty and spice of the game. Each of the dragon boat has the ability to carry 20 to 22 crews of paddlers.
After a tough training, players during the competition two players will be sitting side by side with the drummer in the steersman at the back. With the beat of the drums and the roar of the crowd, participants paddles racing to reach the finish line.