NEW YORK, July 16 (Xinhua) -- Elected officials, sponsors and athletes will gather in Central Park on Wednesday for the traditional Dragon Boat Awakening Ceremony as part of the festivities leading up to the 28th annual Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York City.

Dignitaries and invited guests will help "awaken the dragon" by dotting the eye of the dragon ornament on dragon boats exterior with red paint at the ceremony to be held at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday near Bethesda Fountain adjacent to Central Park Lake boathouse, according to the festival host committee.

Two Dragon Boats will be on display, one boat will be put in the lake for a quick spin for invited guests.

The ceremony will mark the start of the training period for over 200 teams competing in this year's dragon boat races on August 11-12 in Meadow Lake at the Corona Park in the city's borough of Queens.