Dragon Boat Festival returned to Henderson Lake

Paddles up!

After a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19 restrictions, the 20th Lethbridge Dragon Boat Festival hits the water tonight at Henderson Lake.

Known officially as the ATB Lethbridge Rotary Dragon Boat Festival, the event has drawn 48 teams, 19 from out of town.

Opening ceremonies went June 23 and will feature the Lion Dance and the blessing of the boats. Festival chair Diane Randell will provide a history of the festival and Don Robb will perform the national anthem. Dusty Lee Litchfield will warm up the crowd before those ceremonies with a 5 p.m. performance.

From 6:30 until 7:15, visitors will be entertained by students in the Chinook Rock and Pop program in which students from Grade 9-12 learn how to play rock music. From 7:15 to 7:55 p.m., the Lethbridge Community Taiko Association will perform.

At 8 p.m. The Chevelles hit the stage. At 9 p.m., they’ll take a break as Chinook High student Veronica Delagarza performs, before returning to close the night from 9:30 until 10.

The first paddlers will take to the water in the competition Saturday morning at 8 a.m. Racing will continue throughout the weekend with the first of three finals beginning Sunday at 12:20 p.m. Closing ceremonies will be at 3:30 p.m. Sunday.

The annual Rose Ceremony, conducted by breast cancer survivors, was June 25 on the peninsula after the C Cup race. That race is for paddlers who are female cancer survivors.There will also be numerous food and other vendors at the lake.

A wide range of performers will be hitting the stage. A full schedule is available online at lethbridgedragonfest.ca

“We are just really very very excited and honoured to be able to have organized the 20th anniversary celebration,” said Randell Thursday.

“After a two-year hiatus, you can appreciate that we were somewhat hesitant in terms of what you would see in terms of the registration of the teams and the willingness of the vendors and all the entertainers to come forward and participate in our festival.

“But Rotary has really stepped up, our sponsors have stepped up,” she said.

“And the teams have come forward,” added Randell. The teams will include more than 800 paddlers who will compete in a total of 59 races.

The festival layout will look a bit different this year including the team tents being moved closer to the main dock.

There will be a huge screen that will be used to communicate with paddlers and visitors at the festival, said Randell, as well as an expansion of the children’s festival and KidZone.

“It’s a very family-friendly event and we wanted to make sure that was the case. There’s something for everyone, including for watching the races,” Randell said.

Parking can be a concern but arrangements have been made with the Lethbridge Exhibition for visitors and paddlers to park there and walk to the festival from the east end of Henderson Lake.

For local residents, alleyways are barricaded and people will need a pass to get into those areas, she said.

The festival features youth teams with competitors as young as 13 and a senior team.

“It’s a sport that everyone can participate in and that’s what’s really exciting,” she said about dragon boat racing.