The Dragon Boat Race participants gathered at Total Objects in Houndsditch on 21st January 2009 for the presentation evening. The 2008 Dragon Boat Race, which took place at London's Victoria Dock in September 2008, featured 8 teams from across the market, each with ten rowers and a drummer.

All of the proceeds of the insurance industry fundraising events in 2008 have been donated to the COINS Foundation which aims to help the most vulnerable people in the developing world.

At the Dragon Boat Race, six teams made it through to the final. The winning team was "lastminute.com" -- a team made up of representatives from Ascent, Chaucer and G Cube. The top three teams for time completed were:

• 1st: lastminute.com
• 2nd: Antares
• 3rd: Total Objects

Larry Sullivan, Director at Total Objects and President of the COINS Foundation, presented trophies to the highest fundraisers. The Antares team was presented with a 3ft carved dragon to mark their achievement as the team that raised the most amount of money for charity. The top three fundraisers were:

• 1st: Antares
• 2nd: Bell & Clements
• 3rd: Besso

Larry said: "We're proud to be associated with the Insurance Industry Challenge. The team was thrilled to have raised the most money for the COINS foundation, which is an incredibly worthy cause. Knowing that very single penny we have raised will go to projects that will help communities grow and become both thriving and independent is very satisfying. We look forward to doing even better at this year's event."

Ric Law, Head of the COINS Foundation, said:
"The money raised by the insurance industry will have a real impact on people's lives - it really will mean the difference between life and death for some people but will also change their life prospects. We do this by developing a wide range of projects that deliver sustainable change in communities - from building schools, hospitals and homes through to providing micro-finance to encourage local enterprise and providing clean, safe water to drink."

Tony Russell, Sales Director at Total Objects, said:
"2008's Dragon Boat Race got us off to a flying start. The target for the 2009 Dragon Boat Challenge is to get 25 teams taking part and to raise even more money. The race is a great chance to have fun, to beat your competitors and to network - as well as to raise money for a very worthy cause."