Founded in Rhode Island in 2023, the Valkyrie Dragons offer a safe and nurturing introduction to dragon boat racing for those who identify as women+.  The  team creates a welcoming, trusting, and positive environment that draws women seeking a supportive space outside of traditional co-ed teams.  The team has grown rapidly since its founding and now has enough paddlers to fill one standard boat and is well on its way to filling a second one, including two new steerers. With its tradition of post-practice “brags,” where each member is encouraged to share a positive recent moment in their lives, the team has built a community that truly celebrates everyone’s unique gifts.

 

As the team grows, the Valkyrie Dragons collaborate with many other dragon boat teams along the East Coast, ensuring that all teams have a full roster of women for competitive races.  In 2023, members of the team competed with both Boston 1 and the Jersey Thunder, helping those teams to win medals.  In 2024, the team expanded its “Valkyrie” community, welcoming members from Century Dragon Boat Club, Living Root, Ocean State Dragon Boat Club, and Paradise City Dragons who paddled with the team for early-season races. This sense of community, together with a spirit and willingness to take on challenges, has become the  hallmark of the Valkyrie Dragons team.

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The Valkyrie Dragons have swiftly made its mark on the community, competing with new and experienced (or veteran) paddlers from races in Montreal, Canada to races along the East Coast of the United States.  At each race, the Valkyries’ eagerness to learn and refine their paddling skills, collaborate, and compete has been evident. The Valkyrie Dragons are well-positioned to grow, and are building a self-sustaining competitive team of enthusiastic women paddlers that celebrates its membership in the dragon boat community at-large.