The 3rd Barcelona Hong Kong International Dragon Boat Festival (the Festival) was held on May 21-22 (Barcelona Time) in Castelldefels, Barcelona in Spain. The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Brussels (HKETO, Brussels) and the Castelldefels City Council were the main sponsors of the event.
The Festival is one of the celebration events of the 25th Anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Participants from over 20 Dragon Boat teams in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and North America took part in the competitions in the Festival. Apart from participating in the competitions, visitors were welcomed to experience the fun of the sport by rowing in the dragon boat sponsored by HKETO, Brussels.
At the evening party of the Festival on May 21 for around 200 guests, the Deputy Representative of HKETO, Brussels, Ms Grace Li, presented HKETO special awards to the two teams with the highest number of participants.
Originally an ancient Chinese ceremonial tradition, Dragon Boat racing is emerging as a popular activity around the world. It is an exciting sporting competition, great at creating bonds between people from all corners of the world, signifying the importance of collaboration. Above all, it is a lot of fun and very inclusive – any group of friends can make up a team and have a go. "The Dragon Boat racing is the best example of traditional Chinese culture and modern living style in perfect unison. I hope that the Barcelona Hong Kong International Dragon Boat Festival will inspire you to come and visit Hong Kong to experience our unique East-meets-West cultural heritage at first hand," Ms Li concluded.
Follow this news feed: East Asia