Nail-biting finish to Sabah Dragon Boat Race 2007

KOTA KINABALU: The Brunei Dragon Boat Team A out-rowed six other competing teams to win the Sabah Head-of-State Trophy for the main event at the 22nd Sabah Dragon Boat Race 2007 at Likas Bay yesterday.

Racing under a cloudy skies, the team crossed the finish line in 3min 18secs to bag the top prize money of RM4,000. The winning team received their prizes and trophy from Head of State Tun Ahmadshah Abdullah who had earlier thrown dumplings into the sea to mark the start of the exciting race.

The annual race, which attracted some 25,000 spectators, saw Pertubuhan Peladang Kawasan Tuaran take the second spot in 3min 24secs while the Maju Oriental Dragon Boat Team followed closely behind to grab the third spot in 3min 26secs. The second and third place winners received RM2,500 and RM1,000, respectively.

The main event, which attracted seven competing teams, was open to international teams and top Malaysian teams.

As for the four other categories, Terayung won the Sabah Chief Minister’s Trophy (for Malaysian teams only) in a neck-to-neck finish, recording 3min 22secs, followed by Sri Nelayan 1 (3min 23secs) and Bukit Besi Beluran (3min 25secs). The top three winners bagged RM2,500, RM1,500 and RM750 respectively.

The Sabah Dragon Trophy (for international teams and Malaysian teams) saw a nail-biting finish: Oriental Dolphin managed to put their neck in front in 3min 39secs, followed a split second later by Sri Nelayab (3min 40secs) and Mengkabong Mix Teams (3min 41secs). They took home RM3,000, RM2,000 and RM1,000 respectively.

The Sabah Chinese Cultural Association (SCCA) Men’s Team Trophy (for Chinese members only) which saw only three entries was won by Persekutuan Persatuan-Persatuan Cina Tawau (3min 46secs), with Sandakan Fishing (Tung Kang) Association A (3min 46secs) in second and Sandakan Fishing (Tung Kang) Association B (4min 7secs) in third place. The teams get RM2,500, RM1,500 and RM750 respectively.

The race also saw the Pink Challengers, a team of breast cancer survivors whose members were made up of Malaysians and Australians, make their debut. The Pink Challengers took part in the event to create breast cancer awareness.

Also present were Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Joseph Pairin Kitingan (who represented Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Hj Aman), Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun, Sabah Tourism Board chairman Datuk Tengku Zainal Adlin and SCCA president Datuk Chau Tet On.