Dragon boat racing Wettkampf- und Verbandsmanagement

A dragon boat is a human-powered watercraft that originated in the Pearl River Delta region of southern China's Guangdong Province. These were made of teak, but in other parts of China different kinds of wood are used. It is one of a family of traditional paddled long boats found throughout Asia, Africa, the Pacific islands, and Puerto Rico. The sport of dragon boat racing has its roots in an ancient folk ritual of contending villagers, which dates back 2000 years throughout southern China, and even further to the original games of Olympia in ancient Greece. Both dragon boat racing and the ancient Olympiad included aspects of religious observances and community celebrations, along with competitions.

Dragon boat racing has been a traditional Chinese paddled watercraft activity for over 2000 years and began as a modern international sport in Hong Kong in 1976. These boats are typically made of carbon fiber, fiberglass, and other lightweight materials. For competition events, dragon boats are generally rigged with decorative Chinese dragon heads and tails. At other times (such as during training), decorative regalia is usually removed, although the drum often remains aboard for drummers to practice. For races, there are 18-20 people in a standard boat, and 8-10 in a small boat, not including the steersperson (sweep) and the drummer.

In December 2007, the central government of the People's Republic of China added the Dragon Boat Festival, along with the Qingming and Mid-Autumn festivals, to the schedule of national holidays.

The International Dragon Boat Federation defines a dragon boat, within competition regulations, to be: "a long displacement boat of an open design, that is based upon a rib-less carvel form of hull construction, with the following distinguishing characteristics; no stem, hard chine bilge; W in cross section, minimum freeboard, punt-like entry and exit; rocketed keel that is set back from the twin rail boards and curved sheet line with upsweep extremities".

Dragon boats vary in size: medium-sized boats can measure about 38 feet (11.5 meters), whereas larger boats can measure up to 90 feet (27.4 meters) in length. The width and depth of the boat also varies, changing according to factors like the boat's length and purpose, as well as the number of people in its crew. Some dragon boat craftsmen may also alter the width of the boats depending on the expertise of its paddlers, with narrower boats being constructed for more skilled dragon boaters.

The material used to build the main body of a dragon boat is diverse and has varied over the years. Before 1911, Ge wood, imported from countries like Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam was used. From 1911 towards the end of the 1990s, dragon boats had been built using pine wood imported from the United States. Since 2000, cedar wood from the Guizhou province of China had been used. Today, the standard materials used to build the hull of these dragon boats are usually either teak wood or fiberglass.

Teak wood is considerably adept at handling moisture. For a majority of the year, dragon boats are stored out of the water, on dry land, where they tend to shrink slightly once dried. When they are reintroduced back into the sea, teak allows their joints to expand, which allows the boat to close any gaps and further strengthen itself. Sometime in the 1990s, China began its advocacy for the protection of its forests, causing a shortage in large timber resources. Following this, China began to see a rise in fiberglass dragon boats which were often lighter and faster. Over time, dragon boats made of fiberglass surpassed those made of wood, becoming a popular choice and the national standard for dragon boats in China. As a result, while wooden paddles and teak wood boats are still used from time to time, dragon boat athletes often train regularly on fiberglass boats, with paddles made of carbon fiber.

The head and tail of a dragon is typically made of camphor wood. The design of the dragon heads vary according to its location, as each region has their own specific features and colors to dedicate to it. The head and tail are often hand-carved, likely with a chisel and hammer, before being hand-painted. Such heads usually feature a pair of bulging eyes, two jumbo nostrils, a long snout, a stuck out tongue, 'feathers' or 'hairs' that appear frozen in a wave-like motion, and ferocious jaws that feature sharp, white teeth. The head leads to the long, sleek, and low body of the dragon boat which represents the dragon's back. This part also features a W-shaped belly that provides suction onto the water and helps to stabilize the boat. On its stern is a curled tail with minutely carved scales.

Many consider the building of these dragon boats to be a combination of various art forms, including carpentry work, wood carving, oil painting, and marine architecture theory. They also involve a fair amount of labor division where various craftsmen work on different parts of the boat. For example, wooden furniture makers would be engaged to carve the dragon's head and tail, while ship builders would be engaged to work on the dragon's body.

Similar to the use of outrigger canoes or Polynesian va'a, dragon boat racing has a rich background of ancient ceremonial, ritualistic and religious traditions, and thus, the modern competitive aspect is but one small part of this complex dragon boat culture. The use of dragon boats for racing and dragon ceremonies is believed by scholars, sinologists, and anthropologists to have originated in southern central China more than 2500 years ago, in Dongting Lake and along the banks of the Chang Jiang (now called the Yangtze) during the same era when the games of ancient Greece were being established at Olympia. Dragon boat racing has been practiced continuously since this period as the basis for annual water rituals and festival celebrations, and for the traditional veneration of the Chinese dragon water deity. The celeb