LEGO collectors in Asia might remember this year as the time LEGO went all-out in pushing Chinese-themed regional sets. I don’t think anyone who’s seen the Chinese New Year’s Eve Dinner (80101) and Dragon Dance (80102) would forget how they look so easily. But they weren’t the only sets released.
Back when these Seasonal Chinese themed sets were still front-page LEGO news, there was actually a third set announced too. Unfortunately LEGO had images of the third one watermarked, so it’s been quietly released in Asian markets. Finally, a LEGO retailer from Macau has put images of the set online.
True, it now bears the watermark of DigiBee Macau, but this is arguably the first published image of the LEGO Dragon Boat Race set (80103). Aside from that, DigiBee offers no info on its price and piece count (not printed on the box). We can determine things from the art.
As visible on the main image, the Dragon Boat Race (80103) depicts two dragon boats with teams of rowers and a riverside viewing platform for audience and race officials. It has got the largest minifigure count for all these seasonal Chinese LEGO sets at 15.
Probable estimate for the release of this set on the Asian regional markets is from May to June. That’s in synergy with the real-life Dragon Boat Festival, which in 2019 will take place June 7. Again, US collectors must resign themselves to combing secondary markets if they want this set, seeing that it’s also regional-exclusive.