Introducing CanSurvive from Wellington, New Zealand

Where it all began... Back in the summer of 2002/2003 a team of 20 enthusiastic and committed people gathered at Frank Kitts Lagoon for the first time. Novices all but one took 20 minutes to load the old wooden dragon boat as it wobbled all over the place. Wellington threw up the next challenge with a typical Capital southerly and temperatures of 4 degrees. It seemed a certainty that this fledgling team were going to end up in the drink! The common thread - a diagnosis of cancer had touched their lives. Coach Kathy Fernandez later said that she secretly doubted the team would come to much let alone compete in the Wellington Dragon Boat Festival that season. How The team trained in whatever weather – wind, rain and cold. They crashed paddles, endured capsize, bruises, aches, pains and exhaustion. But it was such fun! The most fantastic bond developed and they learnt to help and encourage each other. With lots of laughs all made terrific new friends and found a huge belief in themselves to succeed against all odds. What they lacked in finesse, they made up with tenacity and soon became known as “paddlers with attitude”. The Result At the National Dragon Boat Festival in March 2003 held in Wellington CanSurvive won the Petite Final in a special cancer survivor section. This win was against eight other teams, six of whom were from overseas and very experienced! Emotion ran high heightened by an impromptu on-shore haka as the team paddled to the start line followed by another to celebrate their victory. Further on Fibreglass boats and carbon fibre paddles arrived – faster and lighter and the spirit of the team added to a collection of New Zealand medals and trophies. In 2007 CanSurvive attended Abreast in Australia Dragon Boat Regatta. Departing Wellington after an intense on the water winter training campaign CanSurvive beat off competition from 64 international teams to be placed among five teams in the Grand Final. Early 2011 at Darling Harbour, Sydney, paddling for The Flying Kiwis, saw more exciting firsts! More Recently After several seasons of near misses with plenty of silver and bronze medals the 2014 season saw Cansurvive finally achieve their goal to become National Champions. A momentous moment for all. It didn’t stop there. After 2 years of hard training and fundraising the team set of the the 2014 IBCPC Participatory Dragon Boat Festival in Sarasota Florida. There up against 101 teams from around the world, Cansurvive came 3rd in a stunning final. The excitement lasted for many weeks, truly international athletes now! An amazing Journey that was recently recognized as CanSurvive were named Hiremaster Wellington SportsTeam of the Year 2015 Why The message remains clear. Celebrating life after breast cancer achieves a dream of regaining an active and adventurous lifestyle. Show the world and others what is possible and that you wish to make a difference. What better way to promote breast cancer awareness! The enthusiasm and commitment that the team has cultivated, offers inspirational support and is widely accessible to almost any age or level of ability. No experience necessary! By Mary McAvoy and Iona Elwood-Smith

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