PH clinches overall title in Dragon Boat World meet

(UPDATE) THE Philippines claimed the overall championship at the conclusion of the ICF Dragon Boat World Championships on Sunday at the Puerto Princesa Baywalk in Palawan. The Filipino paddlers collected a record 11 gold medals on top of 20 silvers and 16 bronzes during the four-day competition. On the final day on Sunday, the locals added two more golds, five silvers and two bronze medals to its medal tally. Cheered on by a hometown crowd, the hosts won the masters mixed 20-seater standard boat 500-meter race in two minutes and 6.34 seconds. Singapore (2:06.73) finished second, while Germany placed third (2:07.98) in the competition organized by the Philippine Canoe Kayak Dragon Boat Federation (PCKDF). The Filipinos also topped the 40+ 20-seater women's 2,000-meter standard boat event (10:42.31), besting Canada (10:48.64). They settled for silvers in the 20-seater mixed standard boat 500-meter (1:58.13), 40+ 10-seater mixed 500-meter (2:19.45), 20-seater open (9:23.16) and 40+ 20-seater open 5,000-meter (9:34.47) races. "We practically made history every day, so I am very proud of our national paddlers and how we organized this big event sanctioned by the International Canoe Federation (ICF)," said PCKDF President Leonora "Lenlen" Escollante. "So I am very glad that our staging of this world championship yielded the main goal that our national team was aiming for by clinching the overall title right here on our shores at that. This honor is not only for the PCKF, our paddlers but also for the country." ICF Dragon Boat Commission chairman Wai Hung-Luk of Hong Kong praised the country's hosting of the world meet. "This was truly world-class you have in Puerto Princesa, and all we got was positive feedback from the countries who took part," said Wai. The biennial global dragon boat competition will be held next in Regina, Canada, in 2026.