Justin Lai

“I first tried dragon boating in 2015, which was my freshman year of university. I was convinced to try out for the dragon boat club of my uni, but I tried out really only for fun.

In 2017, I came across with a Facebook post of the B-Cross Dragon Boat Team and decided to give it a try. My team raced at a number of local and international races, including the Lake Biwa Dragon Boat Race.

In July 2017, I went on an exchange program to Oslo, Norway, where I joined the Oslo Dragons, paddled with their team, and started outrigger canoeing. This year, I decided to try something new. I saw an Instagram post by the Spanish Dragons, and I joined their open day. It's been a great test to my stamina, as the team often does long distance races. It's also fun to paddle with such a diverse team. I was also approached by a team member from SKW Eastern Dragon when I was doing pull-ups in the park; I was eager to learn (and try) how to paddle on a wooden, traditional dragon boat, so I decided to join that team, too. So now, I'm paddling with 3 teams!

My favourite memory of dragon boat was paddling in Shanghai, China with the Shanghaied Dragons. I was travelling to Shanghai for leisure and sightseeing in August 2019. Then, I saw a social media post by the team. I reached out to the team and joined one of their trainings during my trip. It was fun to meet the team, learn new techniques, and make new friends who share a common interest! Looking forward to paddling with teams in Singapore. =)”

[Justin Lai (Hong Kong & Singapore), paddler on B-Cross Dragon Boat Team, Spanish Dragons, & SKW Eastern Dragon, ex-paddler on Oslo Dragons.]

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