There’s a strong clamor for dragon boat to become a regular fixture in the Olympics.
To jumpstart the plan, Asian Canoe Federation president Shoken Narita disclosed on Sunday that dragon boating, which Filipino paddlers recently ruled in the Georgia worlds, is now a demonstration event in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
“We already included it in the Asian Games. Now, we will have it as a demo sport in Tokyo,” said Narita through an interpreter. “The organizers of the Olympics cannot increase the number of sports from what we have now.”
Dragonboat chief Jonne Go said they are ecstatic with the development.
“It’s a welcome development not only for our athletes, but for the entire country as well,” said the Philippine Canoe Kayak Dragonboat Federation head who led Team PH to five gold medals in the ICF World Dragon Boat Championships in Gainesville, Georgia.
“Hopefully, dragon boat can be a regular sport in the Olympics someday to give us more chances of winning that elusive gold medal,” added Go, also the auditor of the Philippine Olympic Committee.
Narita also revealed they are looking at Manila to host the 2020 International Canoe Federation Congress with Go a strong candidate as ICF vice president.