On June 3, on the Dasha River, the Second Spring Rowing League of Shenzhen X9 Alliance of Universities & Institutes around X-Lake Sciensity (X9 Alliance) concluded after three weeks of intense competition.

More than 20 teams comprising of over 300 faculty members and students from the X9 Alliance participated in the competition. There were three races in this spring league: along the Maozhou River on May 20, along the Dasha River in Nanshan District on May 27, and along University Town on June 3.

The opening ceremony of the X9 Alliance kicked off along the Maozhou River in Guangming District on May 20.

The races held at the Maozhou and Dasha rivers were sprint races, each accounting for 40% of the total score, while the race at University Town adopted a pursuit race format, accounting for 20% of the total score of the spring race.

The Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech), as the second rotating chair of the X9 Alliance and one of the organizers of the league, cooperated with the Shenzhen Municipal Education Bureau and other groups in Shenzhen on how best to organize and formulate various plans of hosting the opening and closing ceremonies, designing mascots, dealing with logistics and security, and so on.

The participating members of the Shenzhen X9 Alliance of Universities and Institutes included SUSTech, Shenzhen University (SZU), Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School (Tsinghua SIGS), Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School (PKU Shenzhen), Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen (HIT Shenzhen), Shenzhen Technology University (SZTU), Peng Cheng Laboratory (PCL), and Georgia Tech Shenzhen Institute, Tianjin University (GTSI).

The members of the X9 Alliance use the league as a medium to integrate sports and education, and an innovative approach to promote the city’s universities and research institutes.

The expert team of SUSTech for this competition was composed entirely of women. It was the only all-female faculty member team, highlighting the strength and fortitude of women at SUSTech.

The league was divided into three groups. In the mixed eight-person sculls with coxswain, Tsinghua SIGS narrowly defeated HIT Shenzhen. SZU, SUSTech, and PKU Shenzhen overcame obstacles with good results, and placed in the top three in the third group.

The Second Spring Rowing League of the X9 Alliance is divided into two seasons, spring and autumn. By this autumn, it will welcome new members to the league. The league rankings will be based on the total points accumulated over the six races throughout the year, and the team that finishes in first place in the total points accrued will be awarded the overall champion.

Various accolades will also be up for grabs, including the Best Rower Award, Best Helmsman Award, Faculty Rower Award, Outstanding Athlete Award, Outstanding Coach Award, and Outstanding Referee Award.

The X9 Alliance will continue to promote integration through competitions and cooperation, use the competition as a medium, strengthening the integration of sports and education, and use it as an innovative approach to promote the development of the triad model of education, science and technology, and talents.