A team of 11 rowers from the Philippine Army won five gold medals in a dragon boat festival held in Incheon, South Korea.
The Philippine Army Dragon Boat team, composed of six male and five female rowers, was hailed as the overall champions of the 2018 ARA Waterways International Dragon Boat Festival held from October 4 to 8, GMA News reported.
The Philippine team won five gold medals in the 200-meter, 500-meter and 2000-meter mixed event including the tug of war, which led them to being the overall champions. They out-contested 18 teams from countries including Russia, Singapore, Qatar, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Malaysia.
The team previously won the International Dragon Boat Federation and World Dragon Boat Championships in Italy and Australia in 2013 and 2016 respectively.
Lt. Col. Raymond Dante Lachica, the head of the Philippine team, said that the team showed magnificent effort despite not having the luxury of time and resources to prepare for the competition.