London Dragon Boat Festival 2010
The London Festival of dragon boat racing 2010 had over 40 dragon boat teams competing and an entertainment programme to keep all onshore viewers entertained throughout the day. There was support from a number of corporate teams from financial sector and commercial retails sector which added to the competition action. Included in the programme were staged live entertainment and full children’s play area, Chinese cultural and curiosity stalls as well as stalls serving food and beverages throughout the day.
Dragon boat races are traditionally held as part of the annual Duanwu Festival observance in China. 19th century European observers of the racing ritual, not understanding the significance of Duan Wu, referred to the spectacle as a “dragon boat festival”. This is the term that has become known in the West.
Dragonboat festival racing, like Duanwu, is observed and celebrated in many areas of east Asia with significant populations of ethnic Chinese living there e.g. Singapore, Malaysia, and Greater China and now also in London as part of the London festival scene.