With the rhythm of the drums and the coach's slogan, Mope Thipana from Lesotho and his teammates flapped their oars on the dragon boat, and worked hard to prepare for the upcoming Wenzhou University Dragon Boat Race. Unlike other teams, the 13 members of this team come from 11 countries including Zimbabwe, Kenya, Zambia, and Nigeria. It is worth mentioning that this is the first dragon boat team built by international students from Wenzhou University.

"Today's training was great and refreshing. This is my first time to row a dragon boat, so I was a little scared before I stared, but soon I didn't want to leave the boat. Although the simulation race was thrilling, I am looking forward to the next practice." Mope Thipana was very excited when she talked about her training experience. 

From the warm-up exercises to technical exercises, the coach of the Wenzhou University Water Sports Team meticulously taught this group of international students. Before getting on the boat for practice, the coach also explained to the players the precautions in the training and the rules of the game in detail. Through more than two hours of practice, the players basically mastered the basic skills of dragon boating, and also had a competition with the teams from other colleges.

“At the beginning, I was afraid of capsizing. But now we can row smoothly. What a special sense of accomplishment!" Said KANDIE from Kenya. The team members were all rowing dragon boats for the first time. "We all thought it was rowing, but it was a lot more difficult." In the eyes of the team members, the dragon boat race was very interesting. "During the game, our attention was very concentrated, and we had to cooperate with the team members.”

After the training, the team members shared the photos with their families or posted them on social media, and received a lot of "likes". “It is a rare experience in my life to be able to personally participate in traditional Chinese sports activities.” YBRAYYM GYLYCHLYYEV from Turkmenistan said that his family and friends also cheered him up, hoping that he would perform well in the competition.

Wenzhou University Water Sports Team was established in March 2016, and the Dragon Boat Training Base of Wenzhou University was inaugurated on June 27 of the same year. It mainly focuses on dragon boat events, as well as kayaks and sup. The team has achieved excellent results in many national events such as the Chinese Dragon Boat Race and the National University Kayak Championship.