GEORGE TOWN, Nov 28 — Long before Hong Kong hosted the first international dragon boat race in 1976, Penang held the very first one to mark the centennial celebration of the municipality of George Town in 1956.

Penang sent a team to compete in the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Race Festival in 1977 and two years later, the state hosted its inaugural Penang International Dragon Boat Festival.

The event proved a success, with 66 participating teams from Indonesia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia.

For many years, there were two dragon boat races in Penang, the international dragon boat festival in June, and a smaller festival in December in conjunction with the annual Pesta Pulau Pinang.

Initially, the dragon boat festival was held along Gurney Drive, where the current Gurney Bay project is now located.

According to Pacific West Dragon Boat Club coach Lawrence Koh, the seafront promenade would be crowded with spectators and participants from all over the world.

“I started competing in dragon boat racing in Gurney Drive when I was a teenager,” said the 61-year-old.

However, in the early 2000s, as the seafront along Gurney Drive became more polluted and muddy, a decision was made to shift the dragon boat race to the Teluk Bahang Dam after its completion in 1999.

Though the race was usually held at the dam, it was also held in several other locations such as the Mengkuang Dam, off the Batu Uban marine base, and the Sungai Pinang promenade.

State tourism and creative economy (Petace) committee chairman Wong Hon Wai said the dragon boat race was held alternately at Gurney Drive, Teluk Bahang Dam and the other locations over the past 20 years.

“The festival continues to draw international teams from many countries, between 30 and 60 teams,” he said.

About 10 years ago, due to the declining number of participants, Wong said the June race was cancelled and the state government focused more on the year-end race.

“This is because most of the international participants were joining the international dragon boat festivals in China and Hong Kong, which is also held in June,” he said.

He added that it was also dry season in June so the water level at Teluk Bahang Dam was low and not ideal.

“Now, we concentrate on having it in November as it is cold weather in China and Hong Kong so the international teams will be able to come and participate in the race here,” he said.

However, he said the mid-year dragon boat race was revived this year by the Penang Chinese Swimming Club, in collaboration with the Penang Dragon Boat Association and the Penang Rowing Association and supported by the Penang state government.

“It was held in celebration of the Duan Wu Festival which falls on May 31 this year,” he said.

The inaugural Penang Chinese Swimming Club Dragon Boat and Rowing Festival 2025 was held at the coast off the club premises and other activities such as the making of bak chang (rice dumplings) and performances were also held at the club.

As for the annual international dragon boat race, now called the Penang International Dragon Boat Regatta (PIDBR), it shifted to the coast off Straits Quay in Tanjung Tokong last year.

Wong said the venue offered unobstructed views of the racecourse with convenient access to food, retail and family-oriented activities.

“Last year, we had a strong turnout of spectators so this year, we are holding it again at Straits Quay,” he said.

He said over 54 teams, of about 1,600 participants, from more than 11 countries and regions will be participating in the PIDBR.

This year, three para-dragon boat teams — consisting of disabled dragon boat athletes — will also be participating in the PIDBR.

“The Darkness Fighters Dragon Boat Team from Hong Kong, Pink Power Cancer Survivors Dragon Boat team from Hong Kong and PADS Adaptive Dragonboat Racing team from Philippines will be participating in the competition,” he said.

He added that many of the dragon boat athletes are above 60 years old.

“In fact, many of the team members from Hong Kong and Australia are above 60 years old, maybe it’s because they have more time to train since they are retired,” he said.

The PIDBR starts with a tug-of-war competition on November 28 (Friday) while the competition for 250 metre and 400 metre races will be held on November 29 and 30.

International participants have started arriving in Penang since Tuesday evening in preparation for the competition.