Racing enthusiast and tourists thronging the banks of Ashtamudi Lake at Kollam on November 23 were witnesses to a thrilling end to the over three-month long first edition of the Rs 6 crore prize money-Champions Boat League.
Tropical Titans rowed past Raging Rowers by just 11 milliseconds bagging a prize money of a total of Rs 1.31 crore, while the difference between the runner up and the third placed Mighty Oars was just 13 milliseconds.
Tropical Titans crested the finishing post in a time of 4: 33:69, Raging Rowers clocked 4:33:80 and Mighty Oars 4:33:93. It was a thrilling finale to the inaugural edition of CBL, conceived and organised by Kerala Tourism to promote viewership of snakeboat races.
With the oarsmen sending spray and creating ripples on the water as they hit it rhythmically, the largest team sport on the greenest race track in the world kindled awe in spectators. With over a 100 oarsmen per boat rowing to the tunes of the vanchippatu, it was a spellbinding view to see the boats vying for the first three slots. The introductory Champions Boat League had rejuvenated the traditional boat races of Kerala most often associated with the harvest festival of Onam.
Kerala Tourism’s move to transform the traditional boat races of God’s Own Country into a global sporting event has seen tourists, both domestic and foreign, flocking to the venues in large troves. According to the tourism department, above one lakh tourists, on an average, attended the CBL races. This has helped revive the flood affected tourism sector in the state.
For the boat clubs, which had fallen on difficult times, the CBL was a welcome move. Each of the nine teams got Rs 4 lakh for participating in a race with the top three teams in each race earning an additional Rs 5 lakh, Rs 3 lakh and Rs 1 lakh. Organised across 11 venues in five districts of the state, the nine teams clashed over 12 races. Potentially the least a team could make was Rs 48 lakh. As snakeboat racing is an expensive affair, and it costs the teams a big amount to participate, the state government decided to underwrite expenses.
Second placed Raging Rowers earned Rs 82 lakh, while third placed Mighty Oars got Rs 69 lakh. While the winners were a foregone conclusion, there was intense interest on who would take third spot as coming into the finals Mighty Oars and Coast Dominators were tied at 69 points. Mighty Oars edged ahead by just one point. Coast Dominators were the only other team to have won a race from the Tropical Titans beating them in the Kochi leg.
Tough the auction for the nine clubs did not take off owing to the lukewarm response from advertisers, interest is sure to pickup with the Tourism department’s plans to make the CBL a Rs.150 crore event in the next five years. CBL 2020 edition is slated to be grander in scale with two ministers present at the final race announcing mega plans for the race.
Mr. T.M. Thomas Isaac, Minister for Finance, said that the league will include the Malabar districts as well. Mr.KadakampallySuredran. Minister for Tourism, said that there could be stronger sponsorships from corporate houses next year as well.
“The CBL has lent a brand value to boat races and I am sure will evolve into a strong format in future editions,” he said. The idea is to make into an IPL style league owned by franchises, Mr.Suredran said.
The Champions Boat League was inaugurated by Mr.PinarayiVijayan, Chief Minister of Kerala, in Alleppey on August 31 in the presence of Mr. Sachin Tendulkar, cricket legend. Addressing the crowd of enthusiasts at PunnamadaKayal, Mr. Tendulkar said Kerala and its people showed rare resilience, especially after back to back disasters in the form of floods and landslides.
“To overcome the past challenges would not have been possible without the spirit and resilience of Keralites. My prayers and thoughts go out to all the families who lost their near and dear ones. I would also like to applaud the organisers for putting up such an event in a span of just 20 days,” the master blaster said.
Mr. Tendulkar also stressed that while cricket involved up to 16 people in a team, a snake boat race involves over 100 people. “That requires tremendous understanding between the members and the skills of coordination from the captain,” he said.
Mr.Vijayan said that the boat league reinforces the spirit of unity among the people. “True, you compete with each other with your boats. But at the end of the day, it is all about the harmonious relationship between us human beings,” he said.
The CBL got off to a start with the prestigious Nehru Trophy boat race. The race, which formally began in the early 1950s, was named after India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru after he witnessed the race once during his visit to Alleppey. The rolling trophy given to the winners of the race each year was donated by Nehru himself.
Snake boats or “chundamvallam” are essentially long canoes that can seat 100-160 rowers and can have a length between 100 and 138 feet. While the front portion of the boat tapers with a pointy end, the rear end can rise up to a height of 20 feet — the entire wooden structure resembling a snake with its raised hood, giving its famous name.
The rhythmic swaying of the male rowers as they paddle in impeccable unison, the thrusting of the oars hard into the water accompanied by traditional ‘vanchipattu’ or boat songs – all of which collectively define snake boat races in Kerala are a delight to watch. The races, that traditionally take place close to the harvest festival of Onam, attract a lot of tourists who make their way to the state.
Touted as a game-changing initiative, the CBL (www.championsboatleague.in) is meant to professionalise Kerala’s largely scattered snake-boat races. “The boat league commercialises them in a positive way. For, the conventional spirit is kept intact,” Mr.Surendran said. The CBL will mark a paradigm shift in the state’s age-old culture of boat races, the Minister said.
According to Ms. Rani George IAS, Secretary, Tourism, “The Champions’ Boat League has been conceptualised with a vision to transform our traditional boat races into a world-class sporting event. CBL aims to bring in long-term benefits to the athletes and boat clubs and usher in a new era in the sport. The introduction of the league will add a new facet to our tourism offering and further strengthen the brand perception of Kerala as a land of diverse and authentic experiences.”
“It is not just about the prizes or the cash. Our streamlining the regional boat races by making them part of a series that attracts worldwide attention will enrich the traditional event in tune with the times. It is anyway meant to benefit local communities, given its focus on social aspects,” Mr.Surendran said.
The government has formed a company, CBL Limited, for the conduct of the races. The races, being held from 2 pm to 5 pm, were being broadcast live. Star Sports 2, Star Sports 2 HD, Star Sports 1 Tamil, Asianet Worldwide, Asianet Plus, Hotstar, ETV Andhra Pradesh and ETV Telangana will beam the event for an hour from 4 pm.
According to Mr. P. BalaKiran IAS, Director, Tourism, “Champions’ Boat League is designed to elevate the legacy of our traditional backwater boat races. As a part of our diverse tourism offering, audiences can experience the vigour and glory of the backwaters from a whole new perspective this year.”
By signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a consortium represented by E-Factor Entertainment and The Social Street (AMP Communications) for the branding, promotions, marketing and revenue generation activities of the Champions’ Boat League (CBL), Kerala Tourism has made a bold step to project the state as a sporting venue.
The MoU was signed after a multi-agency pitch and Kerala Tourism appointed the consortium which will be responsible for all promotional activities of the league for the next five years starting from 2019 until 2023.
With an estimated 22 lakh viewers watching the races across the five district, and the event broadcast live over several channels, the state government was hopeful of making the business of boat racing more lucrative for the snakeboat owners.
