Manila City, Philippines － Featuring the best collegiate dragon boat teams as well as regular teams from all over the archipelago, the Philippine Collegiate League (PCL), in partnership with the internationally seasoned Triton Dragon Boat Racing Team, will be holding the 1st Triton-Philippine Collegiate League (PCL) Dragon Boat Cup, on July 1, 6AM to 4PM, at the Baywalk, Roxas Boulevard, Manila Bay, in the nation’s capital.
With at least (10) collegiate teams from different colleges and universities expected to join the 2-pronged event with the regular teams, the Triton-PCL Dragon Boat Cup aims to foster the growth and development of dragon boat racing in the country.
Triton, which took home a Silver medal in the 200-meter International Women’s Small Boat Competition at the recently concluded Hong Kong International Dragon Boat Carnival last June 4, hopes to emulate their international experiences in the 1st Triton-PCL Dragon Boat Cup. “We want the teams to experience the hospitality that we’ve experienced abroad. We promise that the event will be festive and that everyone will have a good time,” says Event Organization Logistics Head Siosan Baysa.
Triton has planned and prepared for this event for their 8th year anniversary, falling exactly on July 1, to be able to give back to the sport that has brought the TRITONes together. Now, to serve fellow paddlers and the entire dragon boat community, part of the proceeds from the event goes to their chosen charity of orphans and abused children.
The collegiate category of the Dragon Boat Cup comes as a promising follow-up to last year’s successful PCL Women’s Basketball tournament – created by national basketball Perlas Pilipinas’ star player Ewon Arayi. And with the rising popularity of dragon boating worldwide, this bonafide summer league looks to put the water sport front and center on local stage to take the level of competition even higher for young Filipino paddlers. Likewise, the PCL looks to expand to other team sports and individual sports as a venue for summer competitions.
UPDATES: Triton will now be hosting four (4) race events for regular dragon boat crews, namely:
- Small Boat 250 meters (Women)
- Small Boat 250 meters (Open)
- Small Boat 250 meters (Mixed)
- Standard Boat 250 meters (Mixed)
Meanwhile, PCL has a total of four (4) events as well for collegiate dragon boat crews, namely:
- Small Boat 250 meters (Open)
- Small Boat 500 meters (Open)
- Small Boat 250 meters (Mixed)
- Small Boat 500 meters (Mixed)
- **An additional competition class, the Standard Boat 250 meters (Open), will be a demo race**
The event is in cooperation with Grosby and Brazilea. Other sponsors include: the City of Manila, MMP Awards, Solido Sports, CIGCI United Printing, and PACE Magazine x Freyo. Special thanks to the MMDA and Manila Tourism & Cultural Affairs Bureau.
Provisional registration entry deadline for Triton race events is on July 11, while PCL is on July 16. Deadline for final registration and payment of race fee is June 16 and June 23, respectively.
For inquiries and particulars on how to join, regular club crews may contact Triton Dragon Boat Team’s Rhowie Enriquez at [email protected], Carol Salonga at [email protected], or Aaron Ilkka Garcia at +63917 880 2174 or [email protected].
Collegiate teams may contact PCL Organizer Cayrone “Ice” Lim at +63977 831 8749 or [email protected]