The Montréal Thunder Dragon Boat Club consists of roughly 50 paddlers from different backgrounds, with different experiences, and with a variety of different interests. What unites these paddlers are their desire to train hard on the water and at the gym, their love of teamwork, and their thirst to win. MTDBC has both competitive crews as well as recreational crews. There's room for everyone! ...

The origins of dragon boat stem from Ancient China. It was originally an annual event to honour the virtue of Qu Yuan, a beloved Chinese patriot and poet who in 278 BC committed suicide in the Miluo River to express his dissatisfaction with one emperor of the Zhou dynasty. Out of sadness, the villagers paddled out in fishing boats to save his soul, beating gongs and drums to frighten away evil ghosts.

Today’s dragon boat team is comprised of 20 paddlers, one steersman, and a drummer who beats out the paddling rhythm. The Montréal Thunder Dragon Boat Clubparticipates in mixed dragon boat races, in which a minimum of eight paddlers must be female.

The competitive dragon boat season in Montréal lasts from mid-May to early October. Dragon boat races range from 100 metres to 6 kilometres! The average race distance is 500 metres, lasting on average 2 to 2.5 minutes.