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A听women鈥檚 team from the 麻豆社国产Dragon Boat Association (SDBA) enjoyed great weather and some fierce competition at the recent Alcan Dragon Boat Festival in Vancouver.
Team Chawanda, made up of 17 women from 麻豆社国产with a couple of paddlers from elsewhere, placed eighth in the Women鈥檚 Recreational B Final on Sunday, June 22, on False Creek.
The 麻豆社国产team placed third and fifth, respectively, in its two heats on Saturday, June 21, then placed fifth in its opening race on Sunday, just missing a spot in the A final, team spokesperson Cathie Greenlees said.
Team Chawanda then placed eighth in the Recreational B Championship race with a time of two minutes, 29.64 seconds, just seven-hundredths of a second behind the next boat.
Greenless said the women鈥檚 categories have become highly competitive. By way of comparison, she said, the winning Competitive A Championship boat One West/CIBC from Vancouver, covered the same 500 metres in 2:04.36.
The 26th annual Vancouver Dragon Boat Festival included more than 180 teams, with women鈥檚 teams coming from as far away as San Francisco.听
One of the weekend highlights for Team Chawanda was the participation of Anne-Lise Morgenstieme, an exchange student from Norway.
鈥淎nna-Lise enjoyed her time practicing with us and was thrilled to be able to come to the festival, saying that 鈥榠t will be one of her best memories of Canada,鈥欌�� Greenlees wrote in a statement. Morgenstieme returned to Norway on Friday (June 27).
She said coach Macky Sumalileng 鈥渨as pleased with the finish but knows that with more training and dedication, the team will move up in the standings.鈥�
Team Chawanda travels to the Nanaimo Dragon Boat Festival this weekend (July 5 and 6) and hopes to participate in the Victoria Festival in August. SDBA men鈥檚 paddlers plan to compete with a Vancouver-based team at an event in Harrison Hot Springs in late July.
The SDBA is always looking for more paddlers, Greenlees said. No experience is necessary, and equipment will be provided, she said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a great way to stay fit, and not just for your upper body,鈥� she said of the sport. For more information visit the 麻豆社国产Dragon Boat Association鈥檚 Facebook page, phone Greenlees at (604) 815-3506 or email [email protected].
