2014 Tainan City International Dragon Boat Championship: Over 200 Teams Compete

(Taiwan Business News) The "2014 Tainan City International Dragon Boat Championship" is about to kick off lively at Anping Canal! Yesterday (the 14th), Tainan Mayor Lai Ching-te served as the chief officiant and, following traditional ancient rituals, led the eye-dotting officers one by one to dot the eyes of the dragon boats, praying for the smooth and successful running of the dragon boat championship from May 29 to June 2.

Tainan Mayor Lai Ching-te said that registration for the "2014 Tainan City International Dragon Boat Championship" was quite enthusiastic, breaking through 200 teams for the first time, with a total of 220 teams and more than 5,000 friends from home and abroad participating.

Tainan Mayor Lai Ching-te pointed out that dragon boat racing during the Dragon Boat Festival has become a traditional folk activity in Taiwan. Tainan is not only the first city in Taiwan, but also the first city to hold dragon boat races, and naturally preserves this folk activity of traditional significance. In addition, Tainan City uses "making friends through dragon boats" for city diplomacy, exchanging with various counties and cities as well as international friends, which not only attracts many tourists to visit, but also raises international visibility.

The Tainan City Sports Office stated that in terms of competition categories for the "2014 Tainan City International Dragon Boat Championship," the "International Friends Group" has 16 teams formed by various countries; the "Open Men's Group" has 35 teams competing for the highest prize of 300,000 yuan. The event promises to be exciting, and city residents and people from all places are invited to come to the canal to watch the distinctive nighttime dragon boat championship.

In addition to the large number of participating teams and fierce competition, the "2014 Tainan City International Dragon Boat Championship" also features wonderful surrounding series of activities. In particular, to help young children understand the important meaning and customs of the Dragon Boat Festival, this year planning continues at the Anping Hall of Anping Junior High School to hold the "Little Ones Celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival" activity, fully introducing the historical evolution of dragon boat racing activities in Tainan City and the various ritual and custom activities of the Dragon Boat Festival, including: wrapping zongzi, the great battle to rescue Qu Yuan, I am a little drummer, and more, warmly inviting all preschool children to come and experience them from May 27 to June 1.