A Community-Driven Sports Event For Davao and Mindanao

This May 1 to 4,  we will witness the arrival of an exciting new sport in the waters of Davao City. The 1st Davao City Dragon Boat Festival, to be held at the Baywalk in Matina, will usher in numerous activities, including actual races featuring veteran paddlers from different clubs all over the Philippines, Dragon Boat clinic for beginners and interested individuals, a Build-your-own-Boat competition, a photo contest and many more.

Dragon boating is one sport where the Philippines has long been considered a strong contender globally. To date, our paddlers hold the world record in the 200-meter open standard premiere and the 200-meter mixed standard premiere categories. It is a regular sports extravaganza showcased in the waters of Manila Bay. The sport has also been successfully staged in Pangasinan, Camarines Sur, Boracay and Bohol.

Now, the sport has finally reached the southern frontiers of Mindanao.In hosting the event, Mayor Rodrigo Duterte acknowledged the many benefits the festival could offer the city of Davao. Not only will it provide a new avenue for sports and youth development, its tourism value can bring in a big number of athletes and festival viewers. This in turn translates to commercial and cultural benefits as well.

Finally, the event’s big significance lies in the message it sends out to our foreign and local audience: that the city is a peaceful, progressive and commercially viable place to live in. This will also help to improve the image of Mindanao and the country as a whole.To ensure the success of this first-ever festivity, the organizers have agreed that their foremost objective is to make sure that the athletes and visitors enjoy their stay here, so that they will want to come back to Davao for more activities.

In order to do this, the organizing committee is looking for volunteers to help in the numerous sub-committees and events being developed. The organizing committee believes that by making this a community affair, its success will be assured. Similar to the big sporting events such as the Olympics or the World Cup, the strong presence of volunteers will help make this an affair to remember.

To be a part of the Dragon Boat Festival organizing committee, please contact Ms Clang Calolot at 09189917038 or Ms Ruth Fe Balani at 09177108627. By becoming a volunteer, you not only help our visitors, you also help the city of Davao and Mindanao as well.

For more on Davao Dragon Boating, pls read: https://cbholganzablog.wordpress.com/2014/01/01/dragon-boating-takes-center-stage-in-davao-this-summer/