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Tuesday 23rd July 2024.
July 23, 2024
Today in the last hour our special guests are, Sandy Echevers, co captain of Dragon Boat Team (breast cancer survivor) – Lynn Eskildsen, paddler on the team (breast cancer survivor). And they are here to tell us all about it, in their own words.
Our DragonHeart team was formed on March 30, 2022, by a group of women breast cancer survivors who at some point had rowed before and therefore, we decided to form a new team.
Since then, we have been adding new members and today we already have a group of brave and warrior women and we are still looking for other breast cancer survivors who want to try.
We train every day from Monday to Friday from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. in the Paddle Training Club gym @paddletrainingclub in the Los Ríos Pool @piscinalosrios in the reverted area. Our coach is Juan Carlos Del Río, recognized in the world of this sport as one of the best in Panama.
The workouts are comprehensive and include functional training and rowing practice. On Sundays we head out to sea from the sports ramp in Amador, in the boats rented to us by the Panamanian Chinese Cultural Center. To get unto the boat, all safety measures are taken such as wearing a life jacket and there is always a safety boat in the area.
There are 10 rowers in the boat, 5 on each side plus a drum that keeps the rhythm or “pace” of the rowing and the helmsman who gives direction to the boat.
Each row has an important role, the “pacers” which are the first 2 rows, the “engine” which are the center ones and the “rockets” which are the last two rows. Everyone trains for any position and the coach decides who is best in each position, according to the qualities of each rower, weight, size, strength. The most important thing is to row in coordination, all at the same pace, like clockwork.
The helmsman requires special training and that position is extremely important. Races of 2,000, 1,000, 500 and 200 meters are competed.
For breast cancer survivors, this sport is therapeutic and scientifically proven. Prevents lymphedema, which is swelling of the arm where the nodes have been emptied. It restores mobility to the arm on the side where the mastectomy was performed. What is recommended is to have completed the chemo and radiotherapy treatments and have the doctor’s authorization to practice sports. Doctors recommend that we play sports and lead a healthy life to prevent the monster from returning, and the sport of dragon boat rowing keeps us alive and happy. A cancer diagnosis is not a death sentence, it is a rebirth to a new, fuller life.
Age is just a number, in our team there are rowers from 40 to 75 years old. It is not necessary to be a lifelong athlete to start practicing this sport and it is advisable to know how to swim, but it is not an impediment.
Our team has already participated in several local competitions, winning gold, silver and bronze medals. The most important and outstanding was our participation in the Pan American Championship (PACCC 2023) that was held in our country in March 2023, which earned us the invitation to participate in the World Championship (CCWC 2024) from September 3 to 8 in Ravenna, Italy, for which we are preparing to represent Panama with dignity.
175 teams will be participating in this championship and 15 teams from 10 different countries will be participating in the category of breast cancer survivors.
Dare to be part of this team, it can change your life.
We DragonHeart row with our hearts! IG: @dragonheartpanama