LJUBLJANA, May 31 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of spectators gathered along the river of Ljubljanica in the heart of Slovenia's capital on Saturday to watch a traditional dragon boat race, with 12 teams competing in this year's event.

Organised by the Confucius Institute at the University of Ljubljana with the support of the Kayak Association of Slovenia, the annual race celebrates the Chinese Dragon Boat Festival. With a history of more than 2,000 years, the festival is recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization as part of China's intangible cultural heritage.

Danijela Voljc, the Slovenian director of the Confucius Institute Ljubljana, noted that this year's race coincided with the official date of the festival in China. Andrej Jelenc, head of the Kayak Association of Slovenia, highlighted the record turnout, saying participant levels exceeded those of previous years.

"The event is about getting together and having fun," Andrej said. Besides the race, visitors enjoyed cultural activities such as writing Chinese characters and tasting traditional Chinese dishes.

The four 10-seat dragon boats used at the 200-meter race were made in China and brought to Slovenia several years ago.

Among the rowers was Shan Yujie, a local elementary student who moved to Slovenia eleven years ago. "I like everything at this festival: rowing, company, food," the experienced rower told Xinhua in fluent Slovenian.

Another participant, Anja Bradic, a sinology student at the University of Ljubljana, said she joined the race to enjoy time with friends and practice her Chinese. "The hardest thing on the boat was to catch the right rhythm," she said.

Participants also came from other parts of Europe. Romanda Sheku from North Macedonia, currently studying at the University of Ljubljana's Faculty of Social Sciences, said: "This is my first time at the race, and I am really happy to be a part of it."

This year's champion was the team of the Confucius Classroom from Gymnasium Celje-Center secondary school, who was also last year's winner.

The Confucius Institute Ljubljana, established 15 years ago, has been organising the annual dragon boat race in Slovenia for almost ten years. ■