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Residents and visitors in Yokohama, Japan, shared the fun and joy of the exciting dragon boat races held at the city's Yamashita Park today (June 3).
The Yokohama Dragon Boat Race, held since 1994, this year attracted a total of 183 teams to join the four-day event spread across two consecutive weekends.
One of the highlights today was the Hong Kong Cup race sponsored by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (Tokyo) (HKETO) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government.
The championship went to Seibugawa Mitsulin Tankentai, which beat 20 teams in the race and was presented with the trophy by the Principal Hong Kong Economic and Trade Representative (Tokyo), Ms Sally Wong.
"Dragon boat racing, which is a traditional Chinese custom, has now developed into a popular sport activity not only in Hong Kong but in many countries.
"It is also a good way to enhance international exchanges, as thousands of dragon boat paddlers from all over the world, including those from Yokohama, will join the Hong Kong International Dragon Boat Races to be held in Hong Kong in July," Ms Wong said.
The HKETO also set up a booth and display panels at the race venue to introduce to park visitors and race spectators the various developments in Hong Kong since it became a Special Administrative Region of China 15 years ago in 1997. Quizzes were also held at the booth to arouse visitors' interest in the city.
Ends/Sunday, June 3, 2012
Issued at HKT 16:21
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