龙舟 Dragon Boat

The history and culture of Dragon Boat Racing goes back over 2,200 years and has its roots in the legend of Qu Yuan and the sacrifice he made for his country in the third century B.C, when he drowned himself in the Milo River, in Southern China, in protest against the corrupt regimes of that bellicose period, known as Zhan Guo or Warring States.

Accurate renditions of boat races in the Song Dynasty China and in the later Yuan Dynasty period depict dragon boats, dragon boat barges, tiger boats and pheonix boats arrayed in lanes for competition on a marked regatta course in the ancient Chinese capital city known as Kaifeng. At present, dragon boat sport is getting more and more popular in the world, especially in Asia.

Guangdong has great history and culture of dragon boat. Great competition events have been held every year from Southern Song Dynasty in Guangdong. In Guangzhou Asian Games, dragon boat is the first time to be included as the official sport of the Asian Games.

A traditional Chinese style boat propelled solely by Paddlers using single bladed paddles seated in a forward facing position and steered by use of a Steering Oar. The boat shall be fitted with a Drum, Head, Tail, Drummers Seat, Steering Arm and Steering Oar. The crew on the boat will normally comprise one Steerer and one Drummer and twenty Paddlers.

龙舟是中国传统体育活动。关于龙舟的起源，流传最广的是源于纪念楚国爱国诗人屈原，并逐渐传播到世界很多国家和地区。广东龙舟运动非常盛行，南宋时广东已有大型的龙舟竞渡。2010年广州亚运会龙舟首次成为正式比赛项目。

赛场要求为静水水域，长不低于1000米，宽不低于13米，深不低于3.5米。在规定的距离内进行竞赛，先到者获胜。