The Sun Life Stanley International Dragon Boat Championships, at the southern tip of Hong Kong Island, was expected to draw an audience of 100,000 throughout the day, marking one of the largest races to be held in the city after a four-year break.

Undeterred by the heat, hundreds thronged Stanley Main Beach as early as 8.30am. Paddlers joined 60 races throughout the day with temperatures expected to soar as high as 32 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit).

There were 171 teams made up of more than 5,000n crew members in the races – significantly fewer than in pre-Covid years, when 272 teams joined in 2019, and 269 in 2018, both years with about 6,000 competitors each.

Organiser Alson Wong, chairman of the Stanley Dragon Boat Association, said corporate teams adopted a more conservative approach in sending employees to join this year’s race.

“Some companies said if the whole dragon boat team caught Covid-19 at the races, it might have an impact on their operations,” he said. “Others also said they did not wish to rush into the races without enough time for practice.”

Mechanical engineer Emilien Brunet, 27, representing Dragages Hong Kong, said: “This is my fifth dragon boat race and the team has practised for about six weeks and we are confident that we will perform well.”

He said there were about 30 people from his engineering firm joining in this year.

Hong Kong’s Stanley beach welcomes back dragon boat race

“Cautiously optimistic” was how Ernest Ip, 26, a trainee solicitor at law firm Mayer Brown, described his team’s confidence ahead of the races.

Mayer Brown formed a joint team with Allied World Insurance.

Niki So, 36, who was part of the crew on a boat representing churches Island ECC Ark and Watermark, said after her first race: “We practised for 14 Sundays, which started off very cold and rainy. It’s tough but awesome.”

Crewmate Zoe Ostapovich, 27, said she shared the post-race buzz.

“My whole body was shaking, but it’s a good sign because it means you’ve worked out,” she added.

Business operators in Stanley welcomed the influx of people for the event.

Chris Yau, the manager at restaurant Beesy Bay, said the dragon boat races had been a good boost for business.

“Since the end of May, there have been various invitation races in Stanley over weekends, and these now make up half of the restaurant’s revenue,” he explained.

But he added business had yet to return to pre-pandemic levels.

“We’re now back by two-thirds. It’s nowhere close and business is frankly not great,” Yau said.

Shopkeeper Auntie Hing, who sells beach toys and floaties at Stanley Market, said the races drew a lot of tourists to Stanley and meant a huge increase in trade for her.

“This is the best day for business since Covid. There’s an increase of 90 per cent. Previously, I could be at the stall and not have one transaction a day.”

Also bustling was Tai Po, where about 1,600 people competed in 56 teams, and organisers expected 8,000 spectators. In 2019, the same races had about 2,400 participants competing in 96 teams with about 12,000 spectators, Luke Lam, secretary of the Tai Po Dragon Boat Racing Committee, said.

Lam attributed the fall in numbers to the lack of teenage participants this year because the races coincided with school examinations.

“The decision to host the dragon boat races was not made until March this year. In the past, applications would have opened at the beginning of the year when students could plan their time ahead,” he said.

Hong Kong dragon boat boss seeks quarantine end date so city can host in 2027

The Tai Po race, despite the reduction in participants, saw “many more” spectators than the pre-pandemic levels, a staff member, who asked not to be identified, said.

“People are eager to watch the race after three years of pandemic and we are also blessed with good weather ,” the man said.

Candy Lee, an office worker and mother of a one-year-old, said she was thrilled by the race.

“The atmosphere of today’s race is livelier than those before the pandemic,” the Tai Po resident said.

Lee Ming, 60, also an area resident, visited the Tai Po District Dragon Boat Race for the first time with his granddaughter, Juliana Leung, 11.

“I am so glad that we can have the race after the pandemic. It feels like all the bad things have passed,” Lee said. “We will come to the race in the coming years.”

Wong Man, a crewman for the Tai Po Wan Tau Tong Dragon Boat Club, said he was satisfied with his team’s performance, despite a failure to qualify for the final.

“I came here just for fun, and I am so happy that more youngsters are joining dragon boat racing,” the 63-year-old carpenter said.

The Hong Kong International Dragon Boat Races in Tsim Sha Tsui on Saturday and Sunday, co-hosted by the Hong Kong Tourism Board and the Hong Kong China Dragon Boat Association, will offer prize money as high as HK$78,300 (US$10,000) for some races for the first time.

Organisers said there had been an increase in the participant numbers and countries attending.