A FAVOURITE fundraising event in Tiverton has had to be cancelled this year because of lack of interest.

The Dragon Boat Racing event on the Grand Western Canal was an unusual event which typically involved 17 dragon boats with teams of 15 people racing against each other to raise money for chosen charities.

The Tiverton Chamber of Commerce is responsible for organising the annual event and chairwoman Jo Webber said the decision to cancel this year was hard to make.

She explained: "There was not enough interest this year, only four people had given me their £20 deposit with only four weeks to go.

"It costs £3000 to bring the dragon boat company down here and wouldn't have been able to cover the costs so we had no option but to cancel."

The dragon boat races were a big part of the Tiverton Spring Festival and it is hoped that the event will get back on track next year.

Jo said: "I think the war in Iraq may have affected it because people don't like to commit to things in times of uncertainty.

"The dragon boat races were always absolute mayhem and we thoroughly enjoyed doing them. It also raised a lot of money for charity because although some of the money raised went on covering the costs of the event, the rest went to the people in the boat's chosen charities.

"It was a great means of raising money and having fun at the same time."