President Wu Presents Flag to MTC Dragon Boat Team
Due to the impact of the epidemic, the dragon boat races this year in Taiwan have been scaled down. The MTC Dragon boat is composed of students from across the world but many foreign students cannot come to Taiwan this year. To continue the 44-year tradition, experienced teammates shouldered the responsibility and picked up the paddles again. President Wu Cheng Chih presented the flag to the captain Howard Hok Gay Li and encouraged the teammates in their last practice.
With 64 years of history, Mandarin Training Center attracts students from all over the world. Dragon Boat Team was founded in 1976 and is an important part of MTC. The summer class of MTC started on June 2nd. Due to COVID-19, foreign students cannot enter Taiwan. However, our students are impressed by the epidemic prevention in Taiwan and believed that it is safer to stay in Taiwan than their home country, the number of students enrolling again exceeded 1,100, an increase of 130 from last year. 69% of students enrolled again, which is high in recent years. Captain Howard Hok Gay Li with 6 years of leadership said that usually the teammates are all new members but this year, 25% of them are experienced member.
Joining the Dragon Boat team is not an easy task. 70 teammates are selected among more than 100 participants. Teammates have to practice from 6:30 to 9:00 in the morning every day for 90 days. Some member said that this is tiring but fulfilling. They have particular learned team spirit during the practice and made friends.
Executive Director Chen Jenn Yeu said that foreign student enjoy outdoor activities. The teammates are involved and motivated in participating the practices and former teammates would come back to root for the MTC Dragon Boat Team. It’s a nice tradition of MTC and also a great example of cross cultural interaction