Ottawa Dragon Boat Race Festival

The Festival

North America’s largest dragon boat race festival
The Ottawa Dragon Boat Race Festival began in 1993 with the assistance of the Hong Kong Canada Business Association
2008 marks the 15th Annual Ottawa Dragon Boat Race Festival
Original Founders are Frank Ling, President of the Asian Heritage Month Society, Warren Creates, Head of Perley-Robertson, Hill & McDougall LLP’s Immigration Law Group and Mike Chambers, President of the Canadian Olympic Committee
Executive Director John Brooman
Represented by Ottawa’s 3 largest media: CTV, CHUM & the Ottawa Citizen

Logistics

Entertainment

Multicultural performances including live music, cultural presentations, and ceremonial activities
Roving entertainment
Children’s area featuring award winning family entertainment
Beer Garden
Food Vendors featuring international cuisine and summer desserts
Exhibitions and shopping opportunities
Silent auction

Dragon Boating

Part of a larger Chinese cultural tradition that goes back 2,400 years
Began in South East China as a fertility rite to avert misfortune and bring rain by worshiping the dragon
A Dragon Boat is a slim 44’ racer with a dragon’s head at the bow and a tail at the stern
Each Dragon Boat holds 20 paddlers, a drummer and a steersperson
190 teams participate in both corporate and community categories New race every 9 minutes
15 Challenge Cups
Breast Cancer Survivor Challenge and traditional Flower Ceremony
1,500 medals awarded
Approximately 5,000 paddlers
Paddlers from across Canada, from as far west as Calgary, AB and as far east as Halifax, NS

Charitable Efforts

Paddlers have raised $1,231,000 for local charities through the Pledge Challenge managed by the Ottawa Dragon Boat Foundation charity
Supported 10 local charities since 1998, including the Ottawa Senators Foundation / Roger’s House, Centretown Laundry Co-op, Special Olympics Ontario Ottawa District and Junior Achievement of Eastern Ontario
The eight 2008 charities are the Ottawa Senators Foundation, Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Support Program, Ottawa Carleton Learning Foundation, Pediatric Oncology Group of Ontario, Royal Ottawa Foundation for Mental Health, Algonquin College Foundation, Good Day Workshop, Ottawa Children’s Treatment Centre
Top 5 fundraising teams from 2007 include: Scotia Spitfires, RCMP 22 Horsepower, Fleet of Foote, Showboat, and Wild Women on Water
For more information, please email Executive Director John Brooman at info@dragonboat.net , call (613) 238-7711, or visit the other areas of our website.

2008

2007

2008

2007