JERUSALEM, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- Israel held a dragon boat festival on Friday in the UNESCO world heritage site Akko and 13 teams from different cities of Israel attended the dragon boat racing.
Hundreds of Israeli audience were attracted to watch the dragon boat racing. The Akko Dolphins Club won the campaign in the racing.
It is meaningful to hold the dragon boat festival in Akko, one of the oldest ports in the world and a city with multi-culture, said Chinese Ambassador to Israel Zhan Yongxin.
Zhan said that the festival is also an important part of the activities celebrating the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC).
The dragon boat racing originated in China around 2,300 years ago and it is not only a sport but also a Chinese cultural symbol, said Zhan, adding that the racing is increasingly accepted and celebrated by Israeli people.
The Chinese ambassador also hoped that the dragon boat festival could be a new platform for people-to-people exchanges between China and Israel.
About 130 rowers participated the dragon boat racing, some of whom are blind persons and cancer patients. Each team and each rower fought as hard as they could in the racing and their courage and energy were met with warm applause.
The 64-year-old Yoel Bahalul has been involved in dragon boat racing for six years.
Bahalul told Xinhua that he loves this kind of water sports very much, which is not only a kind of physical practice but also helpful to develop personality.
Bahalul worked in China's southeastern Fujian province for two years. During his stay in China, he learned some Chinese tradition culture such as dragon boat racing and liked Chinese culture very much.
Neomi Meoded, 69-year-old, was once a cancer patient and fortunately has recovered. She told Xinhua she has joined in boat racing for just several months. Though feeling a little exhausted in the racing, she and her partners did their best and felt happy.
Meoded knew China is developing very fast and hoped she could have the chance to visit China.
During the dragon boat festival, a series of interaction activities also attracted lots of Israeli people, including tea arts, calligraphy and Chinese papercuts.
Gad Shavit, who is doing business with Chinese companies, accompanied his wife Revital Shavit to practice calligraphy. Shavit told Xinhua that his family traveled in China for 3 weeks in 2011.
Thanks to the good relations between China and Israel, it is now easy to communicate and travel between the two countries, said Shavit.
It was the first time for Akko to hold the dragon boat racing, Akko Mayor Shimon Lankri told Xinhua.
The Akko dragon boat festival was sponsored by the Chinese Embassy in Israel and the Akko Municipality, and organized by the Old Akko City Community Center and the Akko Dolphins Club.
