Photo 1: IIT Delhi Student Pradeep (2^nd from Left) Called on IIT Delhi Director (1st from Left); Photo 2: Pradeep at 2023 ICF Dragon Boat World Cup

New Delhi: Mr. Pradeep, an M. Tech. student at IIT Delhi, represented the country in the 2023 ICF (International Canoe Federation) Dragon Boat World Cup and he was part of the Indian team that won the bronze medal.

Pradeep, who is a final-year student in the Department of Civil Engineering at the Institute, made the nation and the Institute proud with his team winning the Bronze Medal in the 500-metre 10-seater Dragon Boat Mixed Team event.

On Friday, Pradeep met Prof. Rangan Banerjee, Director, IIT Delhi, and the Dean, Student Affairs, Prof. Aditya Mittal, who congratulated him on his wonderful achievement and wished him good luck for future events.

Pradeep, who hails from Gangana village in Haryana’s Sonepat district, was also part of the team that won 6th place in the 200-metre 10-seater Dragon Boat Men’s event at the World Cup.

Teams from around 15 countries participated in the Dragon Boat World Cup, which was held in China’s Yichang city from June 20–23, 2023.

Speaking of his achievement, Pradeep said, "I am very happy that I could represent my country in the 2023 ICF Dragon Boat World Cup and win the Bronze medal. I am thankful to IIT Delhi, my M.Tech. thesis supervisor, Prof. Supratic Gupta and the entire Civil Engineering Department for extending their full support to me. I am also thankful to the Indian Kayaking & Canoeing Association for its continued guidance. I am hopeful of representing the country in other bigger events and winning medals".

(Photo: Dragon Boat Event at 2023 ICF)

Dragon boat is a race over a clearly defined, unobstructed course in the shortest possible time. There are two classes that compete in this discipline, 10-seater and 20-seater, referring to the number of paddlers in the boat.

Paddlers sit in twos side-by-side and use a single-bladed paddle. Both classes will also have a drummer and a steerer, with everybody in the boat paddling to the rhythm of the drum. The official race distances recognised by the International Canoe Federation (ICF) are 200 or 250m, 500m and 2000m. Events are held for the men’s team, the women’s team, and the mixed team.

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