Dragon boat races held in Serbia, Germany to celebrate Duanwu Festival

Dragon boat races have been held in Serbia and Germany ahead of the Duanwu Festival or the Dragon Boat Festival, as Chinese traditional culture becomes increasingly popular overseas.

The Duanwu Festival is celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month in the Chinese lunar calendar. This year, it falls on May 31.

To celebrate this upcoming festival, the "Nihao China" China-Serbia Duanwu International Dragon Boat Festival officially opened on Saturday at Ada Ciganlija Lake in Belgrade for a two-day celebration of sport and cultural exchange.

Following the opening ceremony, a series of dragon boat races began, with nearly 20 teams from multiple countries including China, Serbia and Romania joining it.

Professional and amateur paddlers from around the world raced together through the waves, striving to be the first, in a thrilling contest of speed and skill.

"I'm a paddler on a dragon boat. It feels incredible! In such a well-organized event, when all the boats start sprinting, the adrenaline rushes to your head, and that feeling is indescribable. Once you've experienced it, you'll never want to stop," said Ljubisa Radojkovic, a member of a Serbian dragon boat team.

Festive races were also held in Germany on Saturday during the second Frankfurt Dragon Boat Festival.

Amid roaring cheers from spectators, 18 teams, consisting of over 500 participants from central China's Hubei Province, Frankfurt and countries including France, Italy and the United States, raced fiercely against one another, each striving to take the lead.

"Sometimes our governments forget that the people like each other. People just want basically the same things, and the more cultural exchange, the more valuable it is, the more chances for peace and harmony in the world. So, something like this is really valuable," said John, a member of a U.S. dragon boat team.

The Dragon Boat Festival, originating in China thousands of years ago, commemorates the Chinese patriotic poet Qu Yuan (about 340 BC-278 BC). People enjoy zongzi, known as sticky rice dumplings, and watch dragon boat races on the day.

China on Friday sent a sea-launched rocket from the waters near the eastern province of Shandong, placing a group of satellites into planned orbit.

The commercial rocket, CERES-1 Y7, blasted off at 04:10 (Beijing Time), carrying the satellites belonging to the Tianqi constellation. The Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center conducted this offshore mission.