Return of the dragon: Hong Kong welcomes back drum beats and crowds for Dragon Boat Festival, but race turnout still below pre-pandemic levels

Colourful dragon boats and accompanying rhythmic drums were seen and heard across Hong Kong on Thursday in the largest celebration of the Tuen Ng or Dragon Boat Festival since Covid-19 hit the city, but organisers said the race turnout was lower than pre-pandemic levels.

Six dragon boat races were held in Stanley, Aberdeen, Sha Tin, Tai Po, Sai Kung and Tuen Mun, despite fewer competitors than in previous years.

Contestants and race fans endured scorching temperatures throughout the day and the Hong Kong Observatory issued a “very hot” warning at 10.15am.

The Sun Life Stanley International Dragon Boat Championships, at the southern tip of Hong Kong Island, was expected to draw an audience of 100,000 throughout the day, marking one of the largest races to be held in the city after a four-year break.

Undeterred by the heat, hundreds thronged Stanley Main Beach as early as 8.30am. Paddlers joined 60 races throughout the day with temperatures expected to soar as high as 32 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit).

There were 171 teams made up of more than 5,000n crew members in the races – significantly fewer than in pre-Covid years, when 272 teams joined in 2019, and 269 in 2018, both years with about 6,000 competitors each.