Survivors Abreast Peterborough Dragon Boat Team

The official IBCPC Festival website is https://ibcpcfrance2026.com/ and the livestream link for viewing races is https://live.ibcpcfrance2026.com.

22 of of our member plus our coach will travel to Aix-Les-Bains, France in the coming days to represent Peterborough and surrounding area at the International Breast Cancer Paddling Commission (IBCPC) Participatory Dragon Boat Festival for and unforgettable celebration of sport, friendship, and hope.

The International dragon boat races for breast cancer survivors occur every four years.  Survivors Abreast hosted the event in Peterborough, in 2010 and has since attended Sarasota, Florida (2014), Florence, Italy (2018), and Waikato, New Zealand (2023).

The France festival will host 4500 breast cancer survivors paddling on 170 teams, representing 37 countries, making the 2026 IBCPC France festival the largest ever held.

The parade of nations and opening ceremonies take place on August 27^th, followed by two full days of races (3 x 500m & 3 x 200m), as well as the Sandy Smith Global Finale race, a special flower ceremony and closing ceremonies on August 29^th.

With the assistance of our dedicated coach, who tells us “Strength is not in one paddle alone, but in every heartbeat moving forward”, the team has been working hard to improve technique, endurance and paddling as one.

Technique matters, as does community support.  We extends our gratitude to those who have supported our fundraising efforts through fashion shows, golf tournaments, yard sales and the collection of wine corks.

With several newbies attending their first International event, along with the veterans on the team, Survivors Abreast looks forward to and is proud to stand among thousands of others who understand our experience intimately, as we share laughter, tears, wonder, and challenging races, and foster friendships and lifelong memories while representing Peterborough and area at this global event.

The official IBCPC Festival website is https://ibcpcfrance2026.com/ and the livestream link for viewing races is https://live.ibcpcfrance2026.com.

Survivors Abreast is team #46.

We are honoured that the Peterborough Petes chose to support our team through their annual Pink in the Rink event this year.

Thanks to the generosity of Paris Marine, we have a limited number of tickets located in the fan zone (Section 16-17-18)
Proceeds from these ticket sales will directly benefit Survivors Abreast Peterborough Dragon Boat team.

For tickets – go to https://square.link/u/dq8NxeZs

• Tickets are located in – Fan Zone (Section 16, 17, 18).
• Tickets cost $20.00 each
• Tickets purchased together will be seated together.
• Tickets will be ready for pickup at the Box Office during business hours beginning February 6th.
• The ticket purchaser’s name will be listed on a manifest sheet at pickup time.
• One piece of photo ID will be required.
• If someone other than the ticket purchaser will pick up the tickets, please tell them to indicate that in the note section at checkout.

Thanks for your support!

Making a Difference, One Race at a Time

On October 21^st, 2025, Survivors Abreast Peterborough and the Peterborough’s Dragon Boat Festival planning committee were recognized by the Peterborough Regional Health Centre Foundation (PRHCF) for our philanthropical efforts and community spirit. 

In 2022, the team and the festival planning committee, pledged to raise 500 thousand dollars over 3 years in support of the PRHCF reImagine Health Care campaign, specifically, in the area of cancer care. It was a milestone we weren’t sure we could achieve.

As the first live fundraising event in our area to come back after the pandemic, we were hopeful we could revive our festival and build on the momentum we had previously created. We were blown away by the support of the community as we surpassed our goal.

After the 2023 festival, when we once again surpassed our fundraising goal, and thanks to the unwavering dedication of the team and festival planning committee, and the remarkable community support, we ambitiously raised our sights, and pledged to donate an astounding $1,000,000 over 4 years to support the cancer care pillar of the PRHCF reImagine campaign.  This part of the campaign has and will invested over $12 million towards 2 CT scanners, a second MRI machine, breast seed localization technology and bring digital pathology to our local hospital.

Well, the team and festival planning committee not only fulfilled that pledge, but with our most recent donation of $400,104.01, our record-breaking, largest single gift ever, we’ve surpassed that pledge by over 200 thousand dollars, raising an incredible $1,204,422.78 over 4 years.

The fact that our Festival, which is 100% run by volunteers, has inspired a community to raise more than 1 million dollars over 4 years, is extraordinary. Each year was built on the previous one, and with persistence and creativity, we’ve continued to expand and grow to build a solid foundation. But it’s the power of consistent small actions by all of us that have been the cement.

We recognize that this was truly a community effort and we thank all of the volunteers, sponsors, team captains, paddlers, businesses, donors near and far who contributed in a big or small way.

Since 2001, the Festival has raised over $4.9 million to advance expert, compassionate cancer screening, diagnosis and treatment for patients from across our region including donations directed to laboratory equipment, 3-D mammography machines, breast ultrasound and radiologist workstations.

We look forward to celebrating our 25^th Festival anniversary this coming June 13, 2026.

Want to have some fun and help your community at the same time? #Getintheboat!
Registration is open for Peterborough’s Dragon Boat Festival but time is running out.
Invite your family, friends and colleagues and join us on June 8th at Del Crary Park in Peterborough for an amazing community event.
It’s gonna be so much fun!! #paddleforacause #ptbodragonboat #paddlesup #prhcf