On The Up: Ngā Hau e Whā Aotearoa dragon boat team to compete in elite China race
From left, Ngaire Pehi, Richard Pehi, Matt Kensington, Analatu McKay and Gordon McKay are all from Whangārei and will form part of the group heading to China this month.
A team of paddlers from throughout New Zealand is heading to China this month to compete in the historic Diejiao Dragon Boat Drifting Race.
Ngā Hau e Whā Aotearoa Dragon Boat Team will be the first international team to compete at the elite level in what is known locally as “F1 on water”, according to Whangārei’s Matt Kensington.
He has been the driving force behind the bid to paddle on Chinese waters after winning a dragon boat race in Miluo, central China, last year.
New Zealand Foshan Lingnan Art & Culture Association helped arrange their invitation to this year’s Diejiao Dragon Boat Drifting Race in Guangdong, southern China.
The race is part of the wider Duan Wu (dragon boat) Festival, celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.
It was the first time in the competition’s 500-year history that it has been opened up to international crews, Kensington said.
The 32-strong team was a mixture of waka ama and dragon boat paddlers from across New Zealand.
Their name means “The Four Winds”, highlighting the diverse mix of paddlers taking part.
The group will leave New Zealand on June 13 and compete on June 20, giving them time to practise in the 22m canoes.
Though there were differences, the vessels were similar to traditional waka in style and length, Kensington said.
The crew, paddling to the beat of a drum, will race up a narrow canal aided by steerers.
They will compete in the L-bend race, for which they need to practise hard braking and sharp turns.
The race, around 500m, would be quick but technical, Kensington said.
He hoped teams could visit China regularly to compete in dragon boat competitions, bringing a mixture of paddlers each time.
“It’s just through a whole lot of random circumstances that we got the invite last year, and it just looks like it’s going to grow into something pretty cool.”
He also hoped to see a memorandum of understanding in place by which New Zealand could host paddlers from China and participate in events here.
Though dragon boating had not taken off in Northland yet, it was something he wanted to promote. The sport was accessible, and the group had people of all ages participating.
Kensington was “blown away” by China when he visited last year.
“They’re very, very proud of their culture, and dragon boating is just massive over there.”
When in Miluo, he observed a strong connection with New Zealand.
“We were at a random park where we were being hosted by a temple, and there was a lot of Chinese that came to New Zealand way back in the day in the mining community.
“And so there was actually a Māori mural on the side of a wall in this park. Yeah, it blew us all away. We had no idea of the strong connections they have with New Zealand.”
Brodie Stone covers crime and emergency for the Northern Advocate. She has spent most of her life in Whangārei and is passionate about delving into issues that matter to Northlanders and beyond.