As the water crashes, Cal High junior Liana Dungca paddles hard to stay steady in her dragon boat, dodging rocks while focusing on her speed.
As an experienced rower she understands that this not only strength but also concentration.
Dungca participates in dragon boating racing with her team, Lightwave, which won the Northern California International Dragon Boat Festival in Foster City Sept. 20-21.
“This is the only thing I could see myself doing for life,” Dungca said.
Dragon boating is a type of rowing where 20 people work together in a few different boats, all racing for the same team. When Dungca races dragon boats, her team uses multiple boats, but sometimes she is alone and races solo.
In 2023, Dungca started to compete in dragon boat races throughout the Bay Area, where she instantly fell in love with the sport.
Not only does Dungca participate in dragon boating, she also has competed since middle school in outrigger boating tournaments where she uses lateral floats to support the boat. These races take place all over Northern California.
“She’s extremely dedicated,” teammate Junior Keerthana Avadhanula said. “She’s always boating over the weekend and over breaks.”
Dungca gets her competitiveness and skills from her father, Jamie Dungca, who has been rowing since college and got her involved in the sport. Dungca struggled at first and couldn’t find a handle but kept working at it.
“Liana started on the concept of a rowing machine when she was 11 years old,” Jamie Dungca said.
Like many athletes Dungca had moments where she was disappointed, but she believes that one failure doesn’t mean she can be defeated easily. She refuses to finish her match without showing her resilience throughout the match.
“One of my hardest moments was flipping,” Dungca said. “And at Riverton [where she competes], there’s something on the side that helps you balance. In a race before, I completely flipped, and had to get back up.”
The physical training Dungca does is also not to be underestimated. Due to the constant strain and exercises for her arms, Dungca makes sure not to fall behind and disciplines herself to stay committed to a routine for physical improvement.
“She goes to the gym, does cardio, running, and arm workouts,” teammate junior Elise Jerozal said. “Rowing itself is an unbelievable arm workout.”
Rowing is a very strenuous sport, especially the free water tournaments that Dungca participates in because they usually take place in the ocean. The challenges of currents, winds, and long distances they continue to strengthen Dungca’s skills.
“My proudest moments would definitely be my solo races in my age group.” Dungca said. “I started flipping over my boat, and then over the past year, I just got so much better, and way more focused.”
Dungca continues to grow her skills and gain more experience as her time continues. She values the connections she makes with her team and her supporters, which makes her such a good athlete.
She hopes that others can take these values and apply them to themselves.
“[In order] to be a better team player, be more open with other people, on your team or outside your team in competition,” Dungca said.
