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A dragon boat, "Longzhou" in Chinese, is a human-powered watercraft. They were traditionally made in the Pearl River Delta region of China's southern Guangdong Province.
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Dragon Boat Festival or Duanwu Festival occurs on the 5th day of the 5th month of the traditional lunar calendar, the source of its alternative name, the Double Fifth Festival. The Chinese calendar is lunisolar, so the date varies from year to year on the Gregorian calendar. In 2014, it occured on June 2.
On this day, the mystical river dragons, who had sovereignty over water, needed to be placated so that the dragons would bless the community with an optimal amount of rainfall. Rituals surrounding the theme of dragon were then developed. Dragon boats are the basis of the team paddling sport of dragon boat racing, a watersport which has its roots in an ancient folk ritual of contending villagers, which has been held for over 2000 years throughout southern China.
Dragon boat racing is a flat-water, sprint paddling sport. It started gathering interest in the western world in the 1970s. Today, it is both a recreational and a highly competitive sport enjoyed by people of all ages in over 50 countries or territories around the world. Dragon boat racing is increasingly popular as a component in corporate team building retreats and charitable fundraising events, particularly for promoting breast cancer awareness.
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