On May 11, 2025, the 6th Concrete Dragon Boat Race of Zhejiang University was successfully held at the Bell Tower Square of International Campus, Zhejiang University, with a total of 27 teams participating. Prof. Wu Jian, Vice Dean of the International Campus, Zhejiang University, Wu Hang, Director of the Student Affairs Department, Prof. Ma Hao, Vice Dean of ZJUI, Assist Prof. Li Binbin, Academic Director of Civil Engineering Program, and other guests attended the opening ceremony.
At the opening ceremony, Prof. Wu Jian warmly welcomed participating faculty and students. In his speech, he noted the Concrete Dragon Boat Race is a holistic event integrating interdisciplinary knowledge, practical innovation design, and traditional culture. He emphasized that as a key vehicle for the University’s innovation and entrepreneurship education, the event not only lays a solid foundation for developing a multi-dimensional evaluation system for innovative education, but also showcases the vivid practice of Zhejiang University students living out the motto “Seeking Truth and Pursuing Innovation”. He also encouraged students to integrate theoretical knowledge with practical innovation, and enhance their interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation capabilities while solving practical problems.
Subsequently, Assistant Professor Li Binbin introduced the basics of this year’s event. He noted that since its inauguration in 2019, the Concrete Dragon Boat Race has run for six successful sessions, growing into an influential brand event at Zhejiang University. Notably, this year’s participating teams see a record high proportion of inter-college joint teams—a clear sign of the interdisciplinary integration trend. He encouraged students to inherit traditional cultural essence, dare to break new ground in technological innovation, and strive for excellence with perseverance and a progressive spirit.
Ma Yitao, class of 2028 in Electrical Engineering of ZJUI, spoke as the student representative. He noted the competition is not only a skill contest but also a teamwork exercise. On behalf of all participants, he pledged to take part with great enthusiasm, and work with peers from diverse academic backgrounds—through in-depth communication and collaboration—to explore the endless possibilities of engineering innovation.
The Concrete Dragon Boat Race is divided into two major parts, the theoretical part includes appearance design, work display, technical thesis, and material specimen strength test; the practical part includes straight-line round-trip racing, curve obstacle driving race and load-carrying capacity testing. Each team is required to independently design the concrete formula, hull structure, and electronic control system under the premise of balancing lightweight and stability.
On site, participating dragon boats featured diverse designs: some integrated Liangzhu cultural elements (from Zhejiang), others tested hydrofoil structures, and still more used new high-toughness advanced concrete. These designs let the concrete dragon boats slice beautiful arcs across the water, highlighting the unique charm of "flying on water". After intense competition, 3 teams won the first prize, 5 teams won the second prize, and 9 teams won the third prize.
Sharing from Liang Yusen, member of the team winning first prize
The team composed of Liang Yusen, Li Siqi, Luo Xin, Zhang Jinglei and Yao Yuanzhi, class of 2027 in Electrical Engineering of ZJUI, won the "First Prize" under the guidance of Assist Prof. Ma Hanzhi of ZJUI.
Looking back on the preparation process, Liang Yusen said excitedly, “From precise debugging of the electronic control system to streamlined aesthetic design of the hull, the whole race preparation brought our team all-round growth and transformation. We leveraged ZJUI’s well-equipped labs and resources, learned from senior Teng Ziyi’s practical experience, and with professional guidance from ZJUI lab engineer Chen Lei, our team brainstormed, refined our design repeatedly, and finally completed our entry Hang Boat. We also want to give special thanks to Assistant Professor Ma Hanzhi—whenever we hit technical bottlenecks, her careful, insightful guidance not only solved our immediate issues but also sparked our innovative thinking. This one-of-a-kind event let us deeply appreciate the profound heritage of Chinese dragon boat culture, while gaining valuable interdisciplinary innovation experience at the cross of engineering practice and artistic design.”
With a millennium of heritage, the race lets students feel the spirit of unity, collaboration and pursuit of excellence as they race through the waves. The Concrete Dragon Boat Race innovatively links tradition and modernity: students infuse engineering wisdom into traditional dragon boat designs, showcasing the organic integration of cultural confidence and tech-driven innovation. Using this race as a platform, ZJUI aims to enhance students' overall competence, spark their innovative thinking, and lay a solid groundwork for their future work in innovative research and engineering applications.
