About Us
What is Dragon Boating?
Dragon boating originated in China more than 1500 years ago. The boats are about 12.5 metres long and are manned by 20 paddlers under the direction of a drummer and a steers person. Races cover distances of 200 to 2000 metres. Dragon boating is the fastest growing team sport in the world.
Breast Friends’ Mission:
- To encourage those who have been diagnosed with breast cancer to lead full and active lives
- To demonstrate the benefits of an active lifestyle through the sport of dragon boating
- To raise awareness about breast cancer and encourage the pursuit of a cure
- To provide support and fellowship to team members
- To have fun!
Who Are We?
Breast Friends was formed in 1998, so that Edmonton-area women could participate in the world-wide pink paddling movement, which started in Vancouver. Team members range in age from mid 30s to early 70s. Some have faced cancer more than once. We train together eight months of the year, both in the gym and on the water. While health, awareness and fun are key, so is competition!
We race against other women’s teams and against our peers — other breast cancer survivor teams. Breast Friends crews travel to, and participate in, festivals that have a breast cancer survivor component in Canada and abroad.
Our Team Logo
The Breast Friends’ logo was designed by Ken Jurina. If you take a closer look, you will see:
The purple portion of the B represents two different sized breasts.
The pink portion of the B represents the pink breast cancer ribbon.
The teal portion of the F represents a dragon boat on the water
Dragon Boating and Breast Cancer Survivors
In the past, breast cancer survivors were discouraged from doing any upper body exercise due to concerns about lymphedema, a sometimes incapacitating swelling of the arm. In 1995, Dr. Don McKenzie, a University of British Columbia (UBC) sports medicine physician, and physiotherapist Diana Jesperson began a clinical study. They used the sport of dragon boating as a case study because it requires strenuous repetitive upper body motion. They found the benefits of exercise, both during and after cancer treatment, to far outweigh any risks. In June 1996, Abreast in a Boat, the original study group, made its race debut at the Vancouver dragon boat festival and a movement was born! There are now more than 150 survivor teams world-wide, with at least 41 teams in Canada.
The physical and psychological benefits of survivor dragon boating include improvements to:
- Post-surgical range of motion
- Muscular and skeletal strength
- Immune system
- Mental health
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