Paris's first women's dragon boat team, composed of breast cancer survivors, expressed excitement over showcasing the Chinese national sport at the 2024 Olympic Games opening ceremony.
The dragon boat team, whose members are all locals with an average age of 45, participated in the torch relay of the Olympic opening ceremony.
Established in 2016, it is the first women's dragon boat team in Paris. Team leader Carole has been involved in the sport for nine years.
"I had breast cancer and the dragon boat is an activity that helps the body to regain mobility after surgeries. I did not know dragon boat before. Thanks to a Canadian doctor, I came to know the dragon boat. In 1995, he found that after breast cancer surgery, woman should participate in physical activity for regaining their energy of life," said Carole.
"Whether it is snowing or it's hot, that is not a problem for us, we will still row the dragon boat. We row under rain, we row in snow, we row against the wind. We row no matter what. This is what we agreed," she said.
Knowing they would be a part of the opening ceremony, Carole said the whole team was excited and felt greatly encouraged.
"This year marks the anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between France and China. For me, making dragon boat known through the Olympics is a great pleasure and we are very proud of presenting the Chinese sport in France and in Paris," she said.
The 2024 Paris Olympics includes dragon boat racing as a demonstration sport.
Breast cancer survivors thrilled to showcase dragon boat racing at Olympic opening ceremony
Cities in China's Yangtze River Delta region have triggered emergency responses, including cancellation of trains and flights, road closures, and the relocation of affected civilians, after Typhoon Bebinca made landfall in Shanghai on Monday, causing extensive disruption as it moves northwestward.
Bebinca, the 13th typhoon of the year, made landfall in the Pudong District of Shanghai around 07:30 on Monday morning.
At the time of landfall, the maximum wind speed near the eye of the storm was about 42 meters per second, making it the strongest typhoon to land in Shanghai in decades.
In preparation for the storm, the city had relocated over 410,000 residents, canceled 577 trains and 1,461 flights.
On Monday afternoon, the first flights landed at Pudong International Airport and Hongqiao International Airport in Shanghai since the two airports announced on Sunday evening that all flights were cancelled because of Bebinca.
In nearby Jiangsu Province, cities including Nantong and Suzhou have been lashed by gales and strong rainfall. Expressways in parts of Suzhou, Nantong, Wuxi and Changzhou cities were closed while reduced speed limits, toll booth closures and the closures of bridges across the the Yangtze River were also put into effect.
Over 21,000 vessels have returned to ports in Jiangsu, while more than 7,700 construction sites and 315 scenic spots in the province have also been closed.
In Zhejiang Province's eastern coastal city of Zhoushan, local authorities relocated over 44,000 residents living in the danger-prone regions.
At 15:00 on Monday, China's State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters lowered the emergency response for Shanghai and Zhejiang from the previous Level III to Level IV, while the emergency response status for Jiangsu and east China's Anhui Province has been maintained at Level IV.
China's National Meteorological Center said that Bebinca will bring more heavy or torrential rain to Shanghai, northern Zhejiang, southern Jiangsu, Anhui and Henan in the next three days.
Emergency responses triggered across eastern China in face of Typhoon Bebinca
