With the 35th annual Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York coming to Flushing Meadows Corona Park on Aug. 9-10, the organizers of the highly anticipated event held an Awakening Ceremony on Wednesday, July 30, at the Bethesda Fountain in Central Park.
This ceremony marked the spiritual launch of this year’s festivities. The intimate, cultural experience makes for a great way to honor tradition, as well as to engage with community leaders and sponsors of the festival.
During the event, Buddhist Monk Ming Tung led a traditional blessing ceremony. Additionally, two dragon boats had their eyes dotted to awaken their spirits and bless the upcoming festival. Shaolin Martial Artists from the New York Shaolin Temple Kung Fu Center were also present to provide attendees with a live performance.
Several elected officials, community leaders and festival sponsors were on hand for the Awakening Ceremony. Among them were New York Dragon Boat Festival Chairman Henry Wan, NYC Parks Commissioner Iris Rodriguez-Rosa, Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office New York Director Maisie Ho, HSBC Regional Market Head Didi Nicolas and HSBC Managing Director and Head of Investment Products and Advisory Jessie Zhu.
“We grew from 10 teams in the Hudson River in 1991 to now 180 to 200 teams in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. We’re very happy to have the support of the community,” Wan said. “We are very grateful for the support from the Parks [department], all our sponsors who have been helping us along and all the community and all the teams.”
This year’s Dragon Boat Festival celebrates the Year of the Snake, which symbolizes wisdom, transformation and intuition.
“This [Dragon Boat Festival] is a great way to celebrate the culture and artistry of these beautiful, amazing boats,” Rodriguez-Rosa said. “This boat race and festival has become a New York staple, with its international reach and spirit for friendly competition.”
Celebrating the ancient Chinese tradition of boat racing, the event is free and open to the public. Participants in the race use colorful, custom-made teak boats, which weigh approximately one ton. Each boat can fit up to 20 people.
“For the past 35 years, we’ve stood by this festival, which is one of the most iconic multicultural festivals in New York, with the huge Hong Kong linkage between Hong Kong and New York,” Ho said. “Our office’s mission is to foster the bilateral relationship between Hong Kong and New York. This festival is one of the biggest events that we have throughout the year. We have thousands of visitors coming to enjoy this, not only for the race, but also for the friendship, sportsmanship and team spirit that they have fostered.”
In addition to expecting more than 2,000 people to compete in this year’s Dragon Boat Festival, organizers of the event anticipate more than 40,000 spectators across the two days. These spectators can also enjoy the performances, food, arts and crafts and other fun activities on hand.
“HSBC was a founding sponsor back in 1991, and we continue to do this event year after year because of what it means to the community,” Nicolas said. “HSBC loves this program. It is something that we will continue to do.”
“We are so proud to continue to support this incredible event, where we celebrate the Asian culture and competition,” Zhu said. “This year, HSBC will have a team of 50-plus employees and friends. They have been training in the local waters. We look forward to competing against some of the strongest teams in the region, as well as welcoming the newcomers, who are competing for the first time.”
