Pinoys win 8th gold in world dragon boat meet

PUERTO PRINCESA, Philippines — The Philippines continued to make waves yesterday in the ICF Dragon Boat World Championships at the Puerto Princesa Baywalk here.

Under a sudden downpour and against strong winds, the Filipino paddlers added four more golds in the meet supported by the Philippine Sports Commission and the Tingog party-list, and organized by the Philippine Canoe Kayak Federation.

Their golden blitz was capped by back-to-back wins in the 40+ women’s standard boat 500-meter event in two minutes and 16.32 seconds and in the men’s 40+ open men’s standard boat 500-meter race in 1:59.23.

At the end of a productive day, the Philippine standard-bearers had collected eight gold, six silver and six bronze medals, surpassing the previous best of five gold, one silver and two bronzes in the 2018 edition of the global dragon boat showcase in Gainesville, Georgia.

“The achievement of our paddlers yesterday was certainly overwhelming after what happened to us on opening day when we did not win a single gold medal,” stressed PCKDF president and former national coach Leonora “Lenlen” Escollante.

“This historic accomplishment was a total team effort: from athletes, coaches, the support staff, everyone responsible in making sure that our national paddlers would excel in this tournament,” added Escollante.