Kingston Royals

Dragon Boat A dragon boat is a human-powered watercraft originating from the Pearl River Delta region of China's southern Guangdong Province. These were made of teak, but in other parts of China, different kinds of wood are used. It is one of a family ...

Club (DBC) is based in

Teddington Teddington is a suburb in south-west London in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. In 2021, Teddington was named as the best place to live in London by ''The Sunday Times''. Historically in Middlesex, Teddington is situated on a long me ...

on the non-tidal

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

History

The club was founded in 1988 as the dragon boat racing section of the

Royal Canoe Club The Royal Canoe Club (RCC), founded in 1866, is the oldest canoe club in the world and received royal patronage in the 19th century. The club promotes canoeing and kayaking, focusing on flatwater, sprint and marathon disciplines. Members of the clu ...

(RCC), among the inceptive wave nationally. The section was formed from a mixture of RCC members and members of

Kingston Rowing Club Kingston Rowing Club (KRC) is a rowing club in England founded in 1858 and a member club of British Rowing. The club is located on the River Thames at Kingston upon Thames, downstream and north-east of Kingston Bridge and Kingston Railway Bri ...

. The club obtained one of the original teak racing boats brought into the country by the Hong Kong Tourist Association to promote dragon boating in the UK. This boat now donated to a club in Germany, was used for racing and training before the introduction of the new glass fibre racing boats. The club began competing in the Far East mainly and by 1990 was the first European team to get to the finals of any competition. In the 1990s, the club never finished below second in any event it entered at the British National Cup; in 1990, 1992, 1993, 1996 and 1998 it completed a "pinkwash" (named for the club's distinctive club colour) of wins in the Open, Mixed and Women's events. Leading members left and four poor years occurred including no races won in 2001 and one British

National League event win for 2002. Momentum restored, and the club is now racing at the highest level of UK racing since promotion to the Premier Division of the British

National League at the end of 2003.

Honours

Kingston Royals often represented

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

before the GB teams selection system. The club continues to make selection to the GB teams and a number of club paddlers have regularly represented the country at European and World level. The club celebrated its 20th birthday in October 2008 in a position as Britain's most successful dragon boat club, having won 33 of the 66 national titles thus far of the

British Dragon Boat Racing Association The British Dragon Boat Racing Association (BDA) is the UK governing body for dragon boat racing as a sport and recreation, recognised by the UK Sports Council and a member of the Sport Alliance, Water Recreation Division. The BDA governs the sp ...

. The Great Britain's Women's coach is based at the club and coaches the club crews. The club won the

Champion Club award in 2009. In recent years, the club has re-climbed the National League standings to second: achieved in 2008 and 2009. In 2006 and those years the club won the Women's and Mixed events at the British National Cup. The club's second crew, known as the ''Kingston Pretenders'' and originally an occasional crew, won the Open Plate competition in 2006 and 2009, and was the only secondary crew in the Open Cup competitions in the 2008 National Cup.

Teams

The club now runs teams for both men and women and for beginners to international racers.

Independence

In 2007, the club's being a section of the RCC, the first canoe club to be founded in Britain, formally ended following a reorganisation of the RCC. Kingston Royals officially became a separate club. However, the Club continues to be based at the RCC site in Teddington and links between the two organisations remain strong.

External links

Kingston Royals
Dragon boat racing Sports clubs in England Canoe clubs in the United Kingdom 1988 establishments in England Canoeing in England Sport in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames {{LB Richmond