Norderstedt Dragon Boat Race

Dragon Boats as a Team Sport Format

The dragon boat is a traditional Chinese boat type — narrow, long, with a dragon's head at the bow and a dragon's tail at the stern. In modern sports, it is paddled in two standard sizes: the longboat with 16–18 paddlers plus a drummer and a coxswain, and the shortboat with 8–10 people. The paddling system requires extreme synchronicity: a drummer sets the rhythm, and all paddlers must stay in unison. This very element makes dragon boating the ideal team-building sport.

The Norderstedt Comeback

The Norderstedt Dragon Boat Race was a regular fixture in late spring for years — until it was suspended five years ago. 2026 marks the return: Three Norderstedt entrepreneurs (Jens Gottschalk, Kreyenberg, Stefan Paust) have taken the initiative to relaunch the event. Goal: Team spirit, community sense, and sporting fun.

The Format

• Course: 200 meters
• Lanes: 3 parallel
• Categories: Fun-Mixed Longboat (16–18 paddlers) and Fun-Mixed Shortboat (8–10 people)
• Participants: Companies, clubs, associations, established dragon boat teams
• Training: Training opportunities for beginner teams in advance
• Catering services for teams

The Stadtparksee

The venue is the Stadtparksee in Norderstedt's Stadtpark — a central green and recreational area of the city, with lawns, playgrounds, and good transport links. The lake is large enough for the 200-meter course and offers space for many spectators on the surrounding lawns for a day picnic.

Norderstedt in the Segeberg District

Norderstedt, with around 80,000 inhabitants, is the largest city in the Segeberg district and, after Kiel and Lübeck, the third-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein. The dragon boat race on the Stadtparksee is also seen as a symbol of the city's identity: active, diverse, sporty, and oriented towards the greater Hamburg metropolitan area.