The Dragon Boat Festival happens every March on Wellington Harbour. The secondary school races that occur this Sunday are the sports’ National Youth Championships. Having won ten titles over the past twelve years, St Oran’s College have the pre-eminent record amongst all New Zealand schools in this sport.

Alistair McDonald his good friend Christopher Swan have coached St Orans over this period. McDonald is quick to emphasise that it has never been about winning. “Our focus has always been on supporting the crew to do their best.”

When asked about his crew’s performance in the February fun regatta and what times they posted, he admits that he didn’t check. His objectives are more around providing life lessons.

“I want this to be something they remember. Maybe the best team experience, they will ever enjoy.” Alistair claims “these girls will go to war for each other. They learn that to achieve results they really need to put the work in. Dragon Boating is the one sport that does not revolve around a single star player, the whole crew need to contribute.”

Amy Murray was the school’s Dragon Boat captain when they won in 2023. For her, “Dragon Boating is the school’s number one sport.” Amy explains to make the crew, trials are held in the preceding year. The process involves fitness testing and practice on-the-water. Equally important when making selections are student’s attitude and their ability to commit to trainings.

In the week leading up to the festival there’s a real vibe around the school. Students are checking in with each other to see who’s going to the race. A hype-video is shown at assembly, as we try to get everyone involved. On the Sunday, there are plenty of green blazers in-and-around the course and the school’s dragon mascot is also in attendance.

“There’s pressure. You feel this over the entire season. You want to perform. Our coaches are amazing.” Their strategy is with keeping our focus on ourselves and doing our best. They tell us to “push hard and that how we perform is how we perform.” Amy believes success came from having good people around you. “It’s about having a positive outlook and lifting each other.”

“The festival is a fun day. You’re surrounded by lots of people. This includes friends you know from other schools. There can be large gaps between races, so you’re always mixing and looking for things to do to.”  

The school’s festival day is made up of three preliminary heats and then the final. In 2023, Amy’s crew lost their first heat to Wellington Girls College. For Amy, this was a good lesson for the crew. The challenge for her was keeping everyone composed and in building confidence.

Before the final, Amy admits “you feel like you’re going to vomit”. However, the coaches have different strategies to help the crew.

In Amy’s year, once the crew had boarded, they paddled only a few strokes to park up in front of the steps at Whairepo Lagoon. The crew had a moment of reflection as they soaked up support from friends and family. The message shared was “this is 3 minutes of life”. As the crew paddled to the race start, Amy remembers the noise of the Green Brigade coming from different parts of the course.   

When asked about the race itself, Amy remembers the movement of the boat. “You can tell it’s been a good start. You can feel the boat pushing forward.”

Did she know if they had won? “I had no idea. I only had eyes for what was happening in the boat. You cross the finish line, and you keep paddling.” The first hints of success were the joyous reactions of her school mates standing on the pontoon just past the finish line.

Although the race finish was a blur, Amy remembers the pride she took in going to the following school assembly. “We didn’t have much voice that week for all the shouting we did after the race.”

Alistair is proud of how the crew have prepared this year. “We may give our strongest ever technical paddling performance. However, this event gets more competitive every year. In the past three years there have been split second finishes.” Races certainly are not won by boat lengths.

Last year’s runners-up Sacred Heart College gave an impressive display in the February preliminary regatta. Over the past four years, Queen Margaret College have consistently finished in the top three.  McDonald felt the Wellington East Girls’ crew could put in a competitive challenge at the festival. He also praised the Wellington High School mixed crew, coached by Joe Sione who has paddled for the New Zealand Black Dragons.

St Oran’s have only been beaten by Wellington Girls’ College and a visiting Marian College crew from Christchurch. On both those occasions, St Orans finished second. This year the girls’ race will see three entries from outside Wellington: Epsom Girls’ College, Solway College and Oxford Area School.

The girls’ final is the premier event in the secondary school dragon boat festival. Over recent years, the boys’ event has only seen 3-4 schools enter. In 2024, Aotea College enjoyed a good win beating St Bernard’s College and perennial champions St Patrick’s College (Silverstream).

Dragon Boat Festival, 2025. Wellington Harbour. Franks Kitts Park. Secondary school racing is on Sunday 2 March. If your school does not participate in Dragon Boating check https://www.dragonboatfestival.org.nz/ for details on how you can get involved in future festivals.

Article courtesy of Joe Serci, College Sport Media

Photo courtesy of Tackld Photography