Zhanjiang rower's team takes four gold and one silver at IDBF World Cup

Chen Guangqin, a 20-year-old Leizhou native, along with his team members bagged one silver and four gold medals for China at the 2018 International Dragon Boat Federation (IDBF) World Cup in Southwest China's Chongqing municipality.

After two neat wins in the mixed class 200m and 100m straight races on Dec 20, China conceded the 1,000m team pursuit to Canada the following day. The team then won the championship with another two gold medals taken in the 400m team relay and mixed class 500m straight races.

"We overwhelmed our peers by momentum, and spectators' support spurred us on," said Chen in an interview with Zhanjiang Daily.

China remains the team "the world has to defeat," according to IDBF President Michael Thomas, and the popularity of the sport is rising.

The biannual World Cup is the second major competition under the IDBF after the World Championships. The world's top 12 teams from Australia, Canada, China, Chinese Taipei, the Czech Republic, Britain, Chinese Hong Kong, Iran, Thailand, Russia and Ukraine were invited to participate in this year's event.