Drift race: Sea of yellow rubber ducks sweeps through Adventure Cove Waterpark
20,000 uniquely numbered DD.Ducks, roughly 8.9cm in length and 7.6cm in height, were released into Adventure Cove's 620-meter-long Adventure River.
A raft of yellow ducks bobbed languidly along on the water, sans a single quack.
These 20,000 DD.Ducks – the chef-hat toting mascot of Singapore restaurant chain Dian Xiao Er – were in a leisurely race down the 620m-long Adventure River at the Adventure Cove Waterpark in Resorts World Sentosa.
Each 8.9cm-long duck bore a unique race number assigned to a 'punter' who had spent at least $60 at the restaurant in a single receipt via the Dian Xiao Er app between June 17 and 21.
DD.Ducks released at the start point.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
The July 22 event – organised by Dian Xiao Er, which specialises in herbal roast duck, and Resorts World Sentosa – was Singapore's first water theme park duck race, and the first for DD.Ducks.
The first duck to cross the finish line – 13 minutes and two seconds was all it took – won its owner a grand prize of $10,000. The runners-up snagged two other owners $3,000 each, while three more will receive $1,000 each.
Staff from events company Sino Elite, which was one of the event sponsors, holding up the first duck to the finish line.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
The six winners will be notified via the app for prize presentation.
Dian Xiao Er is also donating $20,000 to the Bukit Gombak CCC Community Development and Welfare Fund.
Top stories
Swipe. Select. Stay informed.
Singapore Singaporeans aged 21 to 59 can claim $600 SG60 vouchers from July 22
Singapore Two found dead after fire in Toa Payoh flat
Singapore Singaporeans continue to hold world's most powerful passport in latest ranking
Singapore Singapore, Vietnam agree to step up defence ties, dialogue among leaders
Asia Malaysia govt's reform pledge tested as DAP chief bows over unresolved 2009 death of political aide
Singapore Woman evacuated from lift in Supreme Court building after falling glass triggers emergency halt
Singapore Prosecution says judge who acquitted duo of bribing ex-LTA official had copied defence arguments
Singapore Ports and planes: The 2 Singapore firms helping to keep the world moving
The restaurant chain's founder of Samuel Yik said: 'This year marks Singapore's 60th birthday. We wanted to celebrate it with something people would truly remember – not just another promotion, but a joyful moment that brings people together.
'DD.Duck has always been a cheerful part of the Dian Xiao Er brand, so we thought, why not bring it to life with a real race? It's fun, a little quirky, and more importantly, it supports a good cause.'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Straits Times
31 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Trump gives Mexico 90-day tariff reprieve as deadline for higher duties looms
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox FILE PHOTO: A drone view shows a vessel docked during a day of commercial activity at the port of Manzanillo, in Manzanillo, Mexico, December 14, 2023. REUTERS/Daniel Becerril/File Photo U.S. President Donald Trump gave Mexico a 90-day reprieve from higher tariffs to negotiate a broader trade deal but was expected to issue higher final duty rates for most other countries as the clock wound down on his Friday deal deadline. The extension, which avoids a 30% tariff on most Mexican non-automotive and non-metal goods compliant with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade, came after a Thursday morning call between Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. "We avoided the tariff increase announced for tomorrow," Sheinbaum wrote in an X social media post, adding that the Trump call was "very good." Approximately 85% of Mexican exports comply with the rules of origin outlined in the USMCA, shielding them from 25% tariffs related to fentanyl, according to Mexico's economy ministry. Trump said that the U.S. would continue to levy a 50% tariff on Mexican steel, aluminum and copper and a 25% tariff on Mexican autos and on non-USMCA-compliant goods subject to tariffs related to the U.S. fentanyl crisis. "Additionally, Mexico has agreed to immediately terminate its Non Tariff Trade Barriers, of which there were many," Trump said in a Truth Social post without providing details. Trump is expected to issue tariff rate proclamations later on Thursday for countries that have not struck trade deals by a 12:01 a.m. EDT (0401 GMT) deadline. South Korea agreed on Wednesday to accept a 15% tariff on its exports to the U.S., including autos, down from a threatened 25%, as part of a deal that includes a pledge to invest $350 billion in U.S. projects to be chosen by Trump. But goods from India appeared to be headed for a 25% tariff after talks bogged down over access to India's agriculture sector, drawing a higher-rate threat from Trump that also included an unspecified penalty for India's purchases of Russian oil. Although negotiations with India were continuing, New Delhi vowed to protect the country's labor-intensive farm sector, triggering outrage from the opposition party and a slump in the rupee. TOUGH QUESTIONS FROM JUDGES Trump hit Brazil on Wednesday with a steep 50% tariff as he escalated his fight with Latin America's largest economy over its prosecution of his friend and former President Jair Bolsonaro, but softened the blow by excluding sectors such as aircraft, energy and orange juice from heavier levies. The run-up to Trump's tariff deadline was unfolding as federal appeals court judges sharply questioned Trump's use of a sweeping emergency powers law to justify his sweeping tariffs of up to 50% on nearly all trading invoked the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act to declare an emergency over the growing U.S. trade deficit and impose his "reciprocal" tariffs and a separate fentanyl emergency. The Court of International Trade ruled in May that the actions exceeded his executive authority, and questions from judges during oral arguments before the U.S. Appeals Court for the Federal Circuit in Washington indicated further skepticism. "IEEPA doesn't even say tariffs, doesn't even mention them," Judge Jimmie Reyna said at one point during the hearing. CHINA DEAL NOT DONE U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the United States believes it has the makings of a trade deal with China, but it is "not 100% done," and still needs Trump's approval. U.S. negotiators "pushed back quite a bit" over two days of trade talks with the Chinese in Stockholm this week, Bessent said in an interview with CNBC. China is facing an August 12 deadline to reach a durable tariff agreement with Trump's administration, after Beijing and Washington reached preliminary deals in May and June to end escalating tit-for-tat tariffs and a cut-off of rare earth minerals. REUTERS

Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Brazilian banks scramble to understand scope of US sanctions on Supreme Court justice
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox BRASILIA - Brazilian banks are scrambling to assess the domestic fallout from sweeping U.S. sanctions against a Supreme Court justice who oversees a criminal trial against an ally of President Donald Trump, as legal teams weigh how the move to isolate the judge financially could ripple through Brazil's financial system. Justice Alexandre de Moraes is presiding over the trial of former President Jair Bolsonaro, a far-right leader who is accused of plotting a coup to overturn his 2022 electoral loss. Bolsonaro has denied attempting to overthrow the government, but said he attended meetings aimed at reversing the vote. Trump, who has called the trial a "witch hunt" and revoked Moraes' U.S. visa, on Wednesday sanctioned the justice under the Global Magnitsky Act, accusing him of authorizing arbitrary detentions and suppressing free speech. The act allows the U.S. to impose economic penalties against foreigners it considers to have a record of corruption or human rights abuses. The U.S. sanctions were accompanied by an executive order imposing steeper tariffs on Brazilian goods that also cited the case against Bolsonaro. Sanctions under the Magnitsky Act freeze assets under U.S. jurisdiction and bar U.S. firms from doing business with designated individuals. While Moraes holds no assets in the United States, according to Brazil's Supreme Court, the sanctions could prevent him from using payment cards backed by U.S. financial companies such as Visa and Mastercard. The global reach of the U.S. financial system often leads foreign banks to restrict a wider range of transactions by sanctioned individuals to avoid secondary sanctions, raising questions of how far Brazilian financial institutions need to go to comply with the new orders. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore 'For one last time, let's go home': Tears, laughs as last scheduled Jetstar Asia flight touches down Singapore Over half of job applications by retrenched Jetstar Asia staff led to offers or interviews: CEO Singapore No entry: ICA to bar high-risk, undesirable travellers from boarding S'pore-bound ships, flights Singapore 5 foreign women suspected of trafficking 27kg of cocaine nabbed in Changi Airport Singapore Fallen tree branch damages two Yishun flats, showering one home owner in shattered glass Singapore Man accused of raping woman who hired him to fix lights in her flat claims she made first move Singapore 1 ticket wins $12.8 million Toto jackpot draw Singapore 'Switching careers just as I became a dad was risky, but I had to do it for my family' Bradesco CEO Marcelo Noronha told analysts on Thursday the bank was awaiting legal opinions from law firms it hired to assess the sanctions' reach. A source at another top-five bank in Brazil said its initial view is that domestic operations are unaffected, but international and foreign exchange transactions could breach U.S. rules. "So far, the consensus is that the safest ground is limited to transactions in local currency," the source said on condition of anonymity because the bank's analysis is private. Brazil's central bank did not immediately comment on whether it had issued guidance to financial institutions on the matter. Eduardo Bolsonaro, the former president's son and a lawmaker who is in the U.S. lobbying for his father and for amnesty for rioters who stormed government buildings following the election loss, praised the sanctions online, saying the cost of supporting Moraes "will be unbearable" and would be closely monitored by U.S. authorities. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva condemned the sanctions as unacceptable interference in Brazil's judiciary, while Vice President Geraldo Alckmin said that the Magnitsky Act should not punish judges for doing their job. In a statement on Wednesday, Brazil's Supreme Court said it "will not deviate from its role of upholding the constitution and the country's laws." On Wednesday night, Moraes was seen waving and smiling to fans at a soccer match. A picture of him making a rude gesture during the match circulated widely on social media and the local press. REUTERS

Straits Times
4 hours ago
- Straits Times
Lula's approval rises amid tariff dispute with Trump, poll shows
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox SAO PAULO - Approval for Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva exceeded disapproval for the first time in nine months, a poll showed on Thursday, against a backdrop of a growing dispute with Washington. Earlier in July, U.S. President Donald Trump said he would slap 50% tariffs on Brazilian exports to fight what he has called a "witch hunt" against Lula's right-wing rival, former President Jair Bolsonaro. Those tariffs were formalized on Thursday, albeit with some key sector exemptions. The Trump administration has also imposed sanctions and visa restrictions on the judge overseeing Bolsonaro's trial on charges of plotting a coup. Lula's government has pushed back, calling Trump an unwanted "emperor" and the sanctions "unacceptable." The AtlasIntel/Bloomberg poll showed 50.2% approval of Lula's performance, up from 49.7% in the previous poll two weeks ago and marking the first time he has scored greater approval than disapproval since October. The new poll adds to evidence that Trump's tactics may be backfiring in Brazil, rallying public support behind a defiant leftist government. The proportion of respondents who consider Lula's government good or great has also improved, now at 46.6% from 43.4%, although that is still below the 48.2% who consider it bad or awful. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore 'For one last time, let's go home': Tears, laughs as last scheduled Jetstar Asia flight touches down Singapore Over half of job applications by retrenched Jetstar Asia staff led to offers or interviews: CEO Singapore No entry: ICA to bar high-risk, undesirable travellers from boarding S'pore-bound ships, flights Singapore 5 foreign women suspected of trafficking 27kg of cocaine nabbed in Changi Airport Singapore Fallen tree branch damages two Yishun flats, showering one home owner in shattered glass Singapore Man accused of raping woman who hired him to fix lights in her flat claims she made first move Singapore Jail for ex-employee of agency under MOH who corruptly obtained $18k trip from 2 men Singapore 'Switching careers just as I became a dad was risky, but I had to do it for my family' If a replay of the 2022 presidential election in Brazil was held this week, 47.8% of those surveyed would vote for Lula and 44.2% for Bolsonaro. Despite being barred from holding public office until 2030, Bolsonaro insists he could run again, while Lula has hinted that he could run for reelection. The poll surveyed 7,334 Brazilian adults online between July 25 and July 28. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus one percentage point. REUTERS