(10 Jun 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Hong Kong – 10 June 2024
1. Wide of men’s big dragon boat race
2. Wide of a competition with two racing boats
3. Wide pan from audience to race
4. Various of races
5. SOUNDBITE (Cantonese) Chelane Leung, spectator and Hong Kong resident:
“It’s a very meaningful sport. It’s more than the tradition behind the festival. There is a team spirit, and each team member needs to work together to move the boat forward.”
6. Mid of amateur team “Eastern Warriors” resting before their afternoon final race
7. SOUNDBITE (Cantonese) Andy Ng, coach of amateur team “Eastern Warriors”:
“Dragon boat is a team sport. It’s important we share a team spirit. Each member rows with the same objective, which is being the fastest to the finish point. Everyone in my team enjoys it and we enjoy the workout together.”
8. Various of finalist boats splashing water at each other before the last stage of the competition
9. Mid of shop owner Mrs Yuen and sticky rice dumplings in her shop
10. Close of photos on wall showing different kinds of sticky rice dumplings on sale
11. Various of sticky rice dumplings and Mrs Yuen at shop counter
12. SOUNDBITE (Cantonese) Mrs Yuen (only family name given), local shop owner:
“This year’s business is very good. Some popular flavour sticky rice dumplings, like green beans, were already sold out a few days ago. I had to wrap and steam some new ones yesterday, and they are almost sold out by now.”
13. Various of shop interior
STORYLINE:
Hong Kong is hitting the water Monday to celebrate an ancient Chinese festival.
In Cantonese, it’s called Tuen Ng (pronounced Choon Ung in English).
The legend behind the festival is that a sincere and loyal official got in trouble with other officials, and he took his own life by jumping into a river. Locals who supported him, tried to stop fish from eating his body, by throwing dumplings into the river.
Nowadays, Hongkongers continue to celebrate this story, with big rowing races on so-called “dragon boats,” and with big sticky rice dumplings.
One of the popular spots on the coast of Hong Kong island every year is Aberdeen, which has a long-established fishing and boating community.
More than 50 teams compete in over two dozen races throughout the day in front of crowds of people out on a public holiday.
They are all local teams formed by different fishing communities plus amateur enthusiasts.
The competition which got the most attention was the men’s “big dragon boat” race.
It is the fastest moving race with large amounts of water splashed around.
It is also the biggest boat in the competition.
Each team has 44 rowers plus a drummer in the front and a crew member at the back keeping the right direction.
It’s a really essential part of Hong Kong’s water and sea story;a coastal community with a harbour that has brought business and development for centuries.
The dumplings that are traditional for this festival are made with sticky rice, wrapping a wide variety of ingredients, from fatty pork to eggs, green beans, nuts, and sometimes sweet ingredients.
Mrs Yuen, who gave only her family name, is a Hong Kong shop owner who has done business in dumplings and all kinds of traditional ingredients, sweets, and condiments for forty years.
Her shop near the central district of Hong Kong Island is still drawing customers. She says a lot of dumplings are already sold out.
Many of the customers are now from mainland China.
AP video shot by Alice Fung
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