Dragon Boat World Cup 2025: A festival of nations at Beetzsee in Brandenburg!

Dragon Boat World Cup 2025: A festival of nations at Beetzsee in Brandenburg!

On July 20, 2025, enthusiasm for sports and international flair came together at the Dragon Boat World Championships in Brandenburg an der Havel. Around 4,700 dragon boat athletes from more than 33 countries competed for the coveted medals on the Beetzsee regatta course. There were numerous fans in the audience who loudly supported their teams and showed creativity themselves by bringing good luck charms such as a large stuffed koala bear from Australia. The regatta course is considered one of the most modern natural regatta courses in the world and, with a stable 29 degrees and ideal weather, offered perfect conditions for exciting competitions.

The event, known as the 17th IDBF World Dragon Boat Racing Championships, attracted participants from 33 nations. The cooperation between the Brandenburg Beetzsee e.V. regatta team and the International Dragon Boat Federation (IDBF) and the German Dragon Boat Association ensured that everything ran smoothly. Michael Kenzler, the second chairman of the regatta team, highlighted the extensive preparation that began at the beginning of 2022 and thanked all helpers and volunteers for their tireless efforts.

A competition of superlatives

With around 3,500 active athletes, 500 juniors and around 700 supporters, this was the largest Nations World Cup since the IDBF was founded. Teams competed in seven age groups and across two boat classes: Standard Boat and High Performance Racing Small Boat. The competitions, which involved a total of 161 decisions, attracted particularly great interest, including events for para-athletes and in the BCP class.

• Größte Teams:
• USA: 850 Teilnehmer
• Kanada: 548 Teilnehmer
• Australien: 334 Teilnehmer
• China: 307 Teilnehmer
• Deutschland: 436 Teilnehmer

The opening event took place on July 14th, followed by competitions that took place daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. On the last day of the competition, the closing ceremony was celebrated at 7 p.m., where the medal winners were also recognized. The favorites, including China, the USA, Canada and Ukraine, dominated the competitions, while the German dragon boats continued to be ambitious in the medal fight.

An invitation to everyone

20 years after the first IDBF Dragon Boat World Championships in Germany, the event was celebrated not only as a sporting highlight, but also as a festival of nations. Mayor Steffen Scheffel and Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke praised the great commitment of the organizers and helpers in their speeches. They invited all participants and visitors to explore the city of Brandenburg an der Havel and to get to know it as a beautiful backdrop for such mega events.

With this successful championship, Brandenburg an der Havel has once again established itself as Europe's center for dragon boating. The memories of this peaceful celebration of sportsmanship will surely resonate for a long time.

Offers special insights into the event [maz-online.de]. brandenburger-regatten.de offers detailed information on the number of participants and the competition conditions. Further exciting details can be found on drachenboot.de about the background and success of this great event.