Rainbow Dragons honoured as Club of the Year

THE Rainbow Region Dragon Boat Club (RRDBC) celebrated a successful October, earning the 2023/24 Dragon Boat New South Wales (DBNSW) Club of the Year award and placing second in a major state competition.

Seven members of the Lennox Head-Ballina club represented the Northern Region at the DBNSW Region v Region event at the Sydney International Regatta Centre.

RRDBC president Lu Cooney said the team was thrilled with the result.

“We were ecstatic to finish the day, winning second place against some strong teams. A Sydney region won the day by only one point,” she said. The seven paddlers had undertaken rigorous try-outs in January to join the Northern Region team, aiming for a steppingstone to state representation.

Although flooding postponed the event in April, regional teams reunited in October to compete.

Following the competition, DBNSW board president Kathy Cummings awarded RRDBC with the Club of the Year honour.

Vice-president Carmel Smith accepted the award on behalf of the club.

“It was such an honour to be representing the club,” she said.

Summarising Cummings’s speech, Smith said: “It’s our well-run regatta, our growth, the strong support we receive from the community, and head coach Mary Davis’s support to local clubs and her position on the DBNSW advisory board.”

The award recognises RRDBC’s 20-year history, good governance, and its role as one of the largest clubs in the state, with 126 members.

The club’s initiatives include a schools program with Ballina Coast High and an inclusive ‘New Paddler Program’.

Cooney said the award was a significant achievement for all club members.

“What an honour to receive this recognition from DBNSW, for the commitment, positive energy and hard work from all members of our club,” she said.